Of Contracts & Commitments
by IShipLOVE
Summary: "You wouldn't have to be alone if you married me, Rach." One statement that changes everything between them. In less than a year, Rachel will surely be on Broadway and Quinn will be running the family business. But neither wants to go at life alone. So they establish a contract, agree to a commitment, and prepare to plan out their happily ever after. AU Faberry Endgame!
1. Never Gonna Leave You

The idea comes late at night.

This year, they have found themselves in the same position they have found themselves in for several years now. Celebrating Rachel's birthday on a couch, with a cake too large for two in between them and a bottle of wine that goes surprisingly well with their dessert.

They pass the bottle back and forth as they watch Funny Girl and even Quinn manages to recite any line not belonging to Fanny Brice. Fanny Brice is Rachel's part. No questions asked. Quinn has learned this over the past 21 years and she dares not even try to encroach upon what is obviously Rachel's territory.

Rachel takes a long swig and sighs.

"I forgot to make a wish before blowing out my candles this year."

She turns her head towards Quinn who laughs aloud.

"Oh please Rachel. You've made the same wish since you were 6. Always about the same thing. But really, you're so hard working that you don't need to wish on candles or gold stars even," she looks at her best friend and smirks. "You'll be on Broadway soon. I know it and you know it."

"That's true." Of course it is, Quinn thinks to herself. "But Quiiiiiin," she whines, "Think about it. Pretty soon I'll be on Broadway, everyone will know my name, everyone will want my autograph, everyone will want to be with me and yet…I'll have no one to share it with."

Quinn laughs loudly as she takes another forkful of cake and chews it thoughtfully.

"Rach, after you make it on Broadway, like you said, everyone will want to be with you. They'll be falling over themselves to take you out."

Rachel sighs even louder and gulps down more wine.

"Some wine to go with all that whining." Quinn laughs to herself lightly.

"Quiiiin, I'm serious," she intends to throw her head down on Quinn's shoulder but somehow misses entirely and slides down Quinn's chest and into her lap.

Quinn laughs loudly at this and this is when she realizes that both she and Rachel are both well on their way to being drunk. This is their second bottle of wine and that was after the birthday shots that Rachel insisted upon.

"Quinn, seriously, I can't rely on my fame to find me someone because then that means I will have only found someone because of my fame. I want someone who wants me now. Before the fame, before the money, before the adoring fans. Otherwise….." Quinn has to look down to make sure that drunk Rachel is still awake.

She is. And she's looking up at Quinn in a way that tells Quinn exactly what she's thinking.

She understands Rachel's fear because sometimes she feels it herself. She herself is familiar with being kept up late at night paralyzed by the fear of being alone forever. Or worse, only finding someone after receiving her inheritance at 25. Her parents, both co-founders of the multi-billion dollar Fabray Industries, have always wanted the best for her. Their only desire since her birth was to give her everything in their power, yet without realizing it, they had actually taken something away from her. Being born into the Fabray family guaranteed her everything she could ever want.

Everything except true love.

Because even if Quinn found it, or thought she had found it, how would she know? She had always been rich. She had always been "famous". No one would ever _not _recognize her name. And therefore, she would always have that niggling doubt in the back of her mind that anyone she came across would only stick around for the money.

She reasoned that that was why she had yet to find anyone. Because anyone who even mildly looked into her life would know that she was banned from her inheritance until her mid-twenties. So why even approach her before then?

Boyfriends had come and gone and for a while that had been okay with her. For a while, during high school she had actually liked the spontaneity of dating someone new nearly every month. She enjoyed getting to know someone new. She enjoyed trying new things and her serial dating had actually led to her interest in things like paintball and sporting events though she herself had always strayed away from those sorts of activities. She had even enjoyed the reputation she garnered from tossing each boy to the side after a few months and choosing another.

But now? Now, it had gotten old. Now she was less than a year away from graduating college and she hadn't dated anyone since her sophomore year at NYU. Now, though she would never voice it aloud, she was getting nervous. She was getting worried that she would either be forever searching for someone to love her (and just her) or she would be stuck marrying someone in her same position. Someone who was in the same boat as her, wealthy and skeptical of others' intentions to the point where the only option was to marry each other.

If her parents had it their way, the latter would've already happened. There were several wealthy families with healthy, well-mannered sons that would jump at the opportunity to even take Quinn out. But Quinn didn't want those men. Quinn didn't want to have to second guess the legitimacy of her relationships each night as she got into bed with a stranger, deemed perfect for her by her parents. So for now, she was alone. On Rachel's couch getting drunk and lamenting the state of her life.

Quinn steps out of her mind to look down at Rachel and finds her looking off into the distance.

"What are you thinking Rach?" She asks softly, as if anything louder than a whisper would shatter the intimate environment. She unconsciously lifts her right hand to run her fingers through Rachel's hair and Rachel subconsciously moves deeper into Quinn's lap.

The time in between the question and the answer is almost so great that Quinn begins to think she's just not going to answer.

Then she hears it.

"I'm scared Quinn," and Quinn can tell that it has taken every ounce of courage for Rachel to say such a thing, even to her best friend of 21 years. And it seems like this one statement spurs on a slew of concerns within Rachel because before Quinn can ask what all she's scared of, Rachel lets her walls fall in her drunken state. "I'm scared no one will be there when the curtains close and the crowd is gone. I'm scared that I'll be living my dream by day and my nightmare when I come home to an empty house that doesn't feel like a home at all. I'm scared that they'll interview me and ask me when I'm going to settle down and I'll…I'll have nothing to say."

She wants to comfort her and tell her that she'll find someone soon. She wants to pull Rachel into a hug and tell her that she's sweet, and funny, and worthy of all the love in the world. She wants to assure Rachel that she won't have to spend her life alone. But she can't in good conscience say such things because she can't be absolutely sure and she's never said anything to Rachel that she didn't absolutely mean.

So her next sentence surprises her. Not because of its falsity, but actually because of its truth.

"We could get married. You wouldn't have to be alone if you married me, Rach."

Technically, this statement is true. If this were any other time, in any other circumstance, the statement wouldn't change everything. It would be said, laughed about between the two of them, and the subject would be dropped.

But right now, with both women feeling vulnerable and alone, this statement carries a new weight. Now, it appears to be more of a suggestion as opposed to a fact. Right now, in the silence, this statement does change everything.

It's out there and Quinn can't take it back. And if she's honest with herself, she doesn't want to. Because it's true. If she married Rachel, she wouldn't be alone. Even after 21 years of friendship, of knowing every gory detail about Rachel, Quinn had no intention of losing or leaving her.

Rachel Berry. Annoying, loud, rambunctious, self-centered Rachel Berry had been a staple in her life since day one. They had been born six months apart, with Quinn being slightly older. Their fathers had met and immediately hit it off when they were attending a new fathers seminar to ease their nerves and so when she thinks about something as crazy as marrying Rachel, it doesn't seem so crazy at all.

In fact, if Rachel's fathers were rich like the Fabrays. If Rachel had been born a Ryan. This probably would've already come up. Their parents would have pushed them together in an attempt to keep the money in "the family".

But Rachel's dads weren't rich. Though they weren't starving for money, they certainly didn't have Fabray money. And Rachel wasn't born a boy, in fact, she was probably the most feminine girl Quinn had ever met.

Not only that but they were both distinctly heterosexual. They always had been. There had never been any talk of interest in other women. There hadn't even been the casual "I wonder what it's like to kiss a girl?" Not even when all the others girls were experimenting and practicing on each other did Quinn and Rachel think of women in that way. And certainly not each other.

Yet here they were, legitimately discussing marriage. Or…at least Quinn was. Rachel hadn't even responded. Quinn checked back on Rachel to make sure she was in fact, still awake.

"Still with me, Rach?" Her voice comes out soft and low.

"Yeah," Rachel stops and clears her throat because her voice sounds hoarse and almost unrecognizable.

"Yeah, I'm still with you." She says nothing more. Quinn understands. What more can you say to an offer like that?

"I-" she pauses knowing that whatever she says next can change everything. Is she prepared for that? Is she prepared to follow through on what happens next?

Quinn looks down at Rachel and finds Rachel looking back at her with those big brown eyes. Rachel looks scared and vulnerable but…also hopefully and curious about whatever Quinn may say next. She wonders for a second if she could truly be happy with Rachel like this forever? And her answer is so fast and so clear that Quinn Fabray, who is rarely surprised by anything, catches herself completely off guard.

Yes. She could be happy with Rachel. Because she has been happy with her for over 20 years. So it's unlikely that 20 more would change anything.

That answer propels her.

"I'm serious Rachel. I know it sounds crazy but just listen. How long have we known each other?"

Rachel furrows her brow. "Our whole lives."

"Exactly! Our whole lives! We've been friends since we were born. My parents love your dads and vice versa. No one knows me better than you do and I'm fairly certain I know everything there is to know about you. Unless there's anything you're not telling me?"

Rachel responds immediately, not wanting Quinn to think for a moment that she keeps secrets. "No no! You know everything there is to know. I tell you everything."

"Exactly Rach, you tell me everything. I tell you everything. This all makes sense. I mean, what are you looking for in a guy?"

Rachel sits up to think, as she begins to hear the seriousness in Quinn's voice.

"Umm, well, first and foremost, I want someone to appreciate my talents." Because even slightly drunk, Rachel's first concern is her voice. Quinn smirks but she doesn't notice. "I need someone who respects my space, I also really need someone to understand that my first priority is work. I mean Broadway is my-"

"dream" they both say at the same time.

"See Rachel? This is what I mean! I know you! I know your hopes and your dreams. I appreciate your talents because I was at your very first performance. I was with you the very first time you discovered Funny Girl. I hated it and complained the whole time, but I was there. And I have every intention of being at your Broadway debut. I definitely respect you needing your space Rach, our periods have been on the same cycle since we were 15 so we always want space at the same time. And there is no one that understands work being a priority quite like me. I mean, think about it, as soon as I graduate my dad is going to practically hand me an empire and running a business and managing employees is a 24 hour job. We're perfect for each other because not only did we come from the same place but we're headed in the same direction Rachel."

She pauses realizing that her words are a lot to process. Even to her own ears.

Rachel is silent and staring down at her lap. Suddenly, Quinn feels as sober as ever. Suddenly she feels like every bit of air has been sucked out of the room. She feels warm all over. It takes Quinn a moment to realize that she's nervous. Her body is reacting like this because she's afraid Rachel will say no. Or maybe she's afraid that she'll say yes. She's not really sure which is worse.

"Rach-"

"Quinn-"

They both laugh nervously, but Quinn gestures for Rachel to continue first.

She sighs before continuing.

"Quinn….I…do you….ugh. I'm sorry. This is just all so crazy. Like, are you saying…you're in love with me?"

Quinn opened her mouth to respond. Was she in love with Rachel? No. Not at all. The idea of romantic love never even crossed her mind when it came to Rachel.

But there was love between them. Quinn loved Rachel like she was family. But not like sister family…like, everything she did just made more sense when Rachel was there family. She crinkled her nose realizing that made no sense. Maybe she wasn't as sober as she thought.

"I-I'm not-Look Rachel," Quinn hardly knew where to start. She didn't want to hurt Rachel's feelings by outright telling her she wasn't in love with her, but at the same time she needed Rachel to see this for what it was. She decided to start again.

"Rachel Berry, I can personally guarantee you that no one on this earth that loves you more than I do. I love your drive, I love your passion for Broadway. I love that you don't half ass anything, even the small things. I love that even though you're a vegan, you still let me eat meat and you don't make me feel like shit about it. I love that you need an afternoon nap by 3pm otherwise you get irritable. I love everything there is to love. And I can't wait to see what kind of person you become once you make it to Broadway. I can't wait to see what you accomplish and more than that, I can't wait to experience it with you. And that's what a marriage is about. It's about love, yes, but also about commitment. It's about promises that are intended to last a lifetime. It's about showing up and being there and I've already been here 20 years. So what's a lifetime more?"

Quinn lets that sink in for both herself and Rachel. The fact that this is all falling freely from her mouth is almost frightening to Quinn. Where is all of this coming from? Has it always been burrowing beneath the surface? Has it always been waiting on the tip of her tongue?

"Well Quinn, while I am certainly inclined to agree with you," Rachel was sobering up, "A marriage is more than just love, but….are you really serious about this? Do you really think it's a good idea?"

Quinn doesn't hesitate this time. The more she thinks about it, the better it all sounds.

"I'm dead serious Rachel. I was serious when I threatened to castrate Joey Anderson for making fun of you having two dads. I was serious when I turned down MIT to be closer to you here at NYU. And I'm serious about this too. I know it sounds crazy. But at the same time it makes so much sense that we would do this. I'm planning on being with you forever already. You practically live at my place, we already share everything anyway, and if we're being completely honest…."

Rachel looks up into Quinn's eyes almost begging her to continue. Quinn stares back and reaches out for Rachel's cold, clammy hands and finds them. She holds Rachel's hands tightly, so tightly in fact, that she can't tell if Rachel is even really holding hers back. But she continues anyway.

"I'm not worried about you finding someone to love you Rachel. I know that you would, even if it wasn't in the time frame you had in mind. But I just don't know if he would love you the way you deserve. I don't know if he would ever be good enough. And, maybe it's not my place, but I worry that someone would try to take advantage of you. Like you said, what if you meet some guy but he's just after the fame and the money? Or I worry that it'll be some actor that tries to extinguish your star to make himself shine brighter and I-God, I don't want that for you. I have always wanted the very best for you Rachel and I know that if you give me a chance, I could be the very best. And that sounds insane, I know, but…." She doesn't know what else to say.

These words tumbling out of her mouth are so foreign. She's thought these things in passing but never once has she said them aloud to Rachel. She's considered the fact that Rachel is too good for every single man that's ever passed her by, but she herself never considered that she might be a good fit for Rachel. Yet everything she was saying was true.

"So, you're…you're doing this just for me? So I'm… not taken advantage of?" Quinn hears something in her voice that she can't quite place. Anger? Desperation? Sadness?

"No but…yes?" Quinn becomes frustrated and goes to pull back her hands from Rachel's lap, but Rachel refuses to let go.

"Just…tell me the truth. You've always been honest with me Quinn. So what are you trying to say?"

The truth? "The truth is that I trust you. I trust you with my life. The truth is that I love you, you're my best friend. The truth is that I don't want to be alone. And I never want you to feel alone either. The truth is that together we could be unstoppable. Broadway meets business. The truth is I could be front row at every show so that everyone knows that you not only accomplished your dreams, but found a beautiful woman to share your life with. The truth is that you can be my date for those boring as fuck galas and we can make the whole scene more progressive. The truth is that we can both save ourselves so much heartbreak this way. And the truth is that this doesn't feel at all like setting for something less because even as just friends, nothing as real as what we have has ever come my way. The truth, Rachel Berry...is that I want to marry the shit out of you."

This makes Rachel lean forward in laughter and she squeezes Quinn's hands.

"Quinn Fabray! Though you make great points, that is not how you ask a girl to marry you!"

Quinn laughs loudly with her, but leans forward so that her forehead is pressed against Rachel's.

She's so close that she can feel the warmth of Rachel's breath. She can smell the wine on her lips.

"Rach…is that a yes?" Rachel closes her eyes as Quinn's soft breath hits her.

Rachel opens her eyes and takes a deep breath and it's when she exhales that Quinn hears it. It's faint and breathy but she hears it.

"Yes."

"Yes?"

Rachel nods, and opens her mouth to repeat herself but Quinn stops the words from coming out by surging forward and pressing her lips firmly against Rachel's.

She doesn't know what causes her to kiss Rachel, but as their lips brush lazily together, Quinn has no regrets.

If Rachel has any doubts if she could go through with something like this, Quinn's lips on hers tell her everything she needs to know.

Yes, she could definitely marry Quinn Fabray.

**#####**

**This is my first time trying out Faberry but this idea popped into my head about a year ago and I was just waiting for someone else to write it. I realized about a week ago that if I wanted to read such a story, I'd have to write it myself, so here you have it, the first chapter! I hope you enjoyed it, if so please review! I love feedback and constructive criticism! :) Again, please note, that this is Faberry endgame, but it may be a bit of a slow process until they reveal their feelings. **

**Alright, thanks again for reading! :) **

**Title by Us The Duo**


	2. House Party

Surprisingly enough, it's Rachel that approaches the idea of putting all of this down on paper.

When she mentions it to Quinn, she laughs.

"What? What do you mean?"

"I mean, that maybe we should write something up and put it down on paper."

Quinn puts her book down. Her eyebrows furrow.

"Like a contract? Rachel, I'm not going to back out of this." She's almost offended at Rachel's lack of confidence in her ability to follow through with an idea that _she _proposed.

Rachel finally seems to hear the offensiveness of the statement and tries to backtrack.

"No no! I know you wouldn't back out. That's not what the contract is for. It's just to make sure that we each know what's expected of us, you know?"

Quinn is now more confused than she was originally. Was something more expected of her than just marrying Rachel? She voices this question.

"What's expected of us?"

Rachel realizes that maybe she hasn't been as clear as she had intended. She really didn't even know what she was trying to say.

She had only thought of this idea the night before.

It was one of the few nights she had spent in her own dorm at NYADA and she was lying in bed trying to focus on the homework assigned, but really, she already knew the entire history of Broadway so there was hardly a need for focus. Her mind began to wander to what Quinn was doing in her absence.

She had found herself thinking about Quinn quite a bit in the past few weeks. Since she had said "yes" to Quinn's (rather indecent) proposal, she had been thinking heavily about Quinn. All at once, it seemed, so many thoughts came rushing towards her.

When would they get married?

How would they tell their parents?

Would there parents be okay with such a thing?

The Fabrays had never expressed any particular disdain for same-sex couples, but they had never spoken positively about it either. Rachel was sure her dad's would be fine with it, obviously. They adored Quinn, treated her as if she was a second daughter, gotten excited over Quinn's many accomplishments as if they had raised her themselves.

But what about Mr. and Mrs. Fabray? Sure, they had always welcomed Rachel into the family, but 21 years later, she was still only comfortable referring to them as Mr. and Mrs. Fabray, whereas Quinn had occasionally referred to Rachel's fathers as her own.

What would they think of Rachel Berry marrying their only daughter? They may have been fine with them as friends, but would they approve of them as wives?

Throughout the weeks, the greatest fear that had manifested itself in Rachel's brain was the question that she was sure everyone would ask: Why Rachel Berry?

Quinn could have anyone. Man or woman. It would be expected that Quinn would marry someone successful. Someone beautiful. Someone who was witty and brilliant. Someone who lit up a room. Someone who was obviously more worthy than Rachel.

But Quinn had chosen _her_. For some strange reason, Quinn had overlooked every man and woman she had ever come across and chosen Rachel.

But it wasn't as if she had _nothing _to offer, Rachel reminded herself.

She was destined to be a star. She always had been. She was headed for Broadway and the only reason why she wasn't already there was because her father's insisted that if they were paying for Rachel's $40,000 a year education then she was going to focus on it solely and earn a degree.

She had originally tried to secretly audition for shows and still focus on school, but she quickly realized she couldn't give 100% of herself to both of those things simultaneously. So after Rachel received her first 'C' in her life, in "Auditioning Methods" no less, she decided that she would wait until graduating to pursue Broadway.

But other than that, Rachel, who had always prided herself on her many talents, couldn't come up with a single thing that she brought to the table.

She didn't cook, she was terribly messy, and she was whiny when she didn't get her way. She was admittedly self-consumed, usually forgetting to ask about other people and their lives. She definitely didn't have the best sense of fashion, though Quinn had been trying to fix that for the past few years. She didn't like going out to night clubs, so she was never the life of the party when Quinn did manage to drag her out after 10pm.

She tossed her textbook aside and decided not to list out all of the things she _didn't _have or do and decided instead to list out what she did do well. What she _did _bring to the table.

She started with Quinn's side, which was easier and less self-deprecating.

**Quinn:**

**Excellent cook – also makes vegan dishes**

**She can carry a note (though she can be a bit sharp at times) **

**Does my laundry **

**And my taxes **

**And my hair**

**And my make up**

**She's cleanly **

**She's well-read **

**Well-mannered**

**Well-liked**

**Well-….looking**

_Is that a word? _

No, of course not. What Rachel really meant was that Quinn was attractive. Ever since they had entered their teens, Rachel had been jealous of her best friend's looks. Even before high school, when they weren't yet allowed to wear makeup, Quinn still managed to be the most beautiful girl in school. And when Quinn turned 16 and was finally allowed to date, it was no surprise to Rachel that boys were lined up around the block. But while Quinn was definitely interested in their affections, she had never once ditched plans with Rachel for a guy or a date. Because Quinn was loyal.

Rachel jotted that down too with about 20 more of Quinn's most redeeming qualities before moving onto her own side.

**Rachel:**

**Angels smile upon me when I sing**

**I can make 4 different types of salad**

It was just as she was moving to write "I know all the lines to Funny Girl", that she gave up entirely.

She rolled over onto her back and stared up at the ceiling. As she thought of her poorly made lists, she realized that this wasn't fair.

It hit her that if they were to get married, Quinn would do more for her than she could ever do for Quinn.

But what could she do about that? What could she do to be better for Quinn? _How _could she be better for Quinn? What did Quinn want from her anyway?

So many questions to which Rachel had no answer. And she decided there was only one way to find out.

So here she was, subtly asking Quinn what she wanted out of Rachel.

They were sitting on the couch facing each other with a note pad in both their laps.

Quinn had her lower lip in between her teeth and was staring at the ceiling thinking.

"Okay, okay, I got one. I don't mind making dinner obviously, BUT I'm sick of grocery shopping! So that can be your responsibility."

Rachel laughs and looks up from her own list.

"Seriously? That's your first demand?!" Quinn shrugs. "Okay fine…I'll do any grocery shopping, but don't complain if there's no meat in my basket." Rachel smirks.

Quinn glares at her but says nothing. Rachel threatens to strip Quinn of meat products often, so she feels no need to take this seriously.

"Alright, here's mine: I would like you to really start doing the laundry. I've never told you as much, but I hate laundry."

Rachel looks up from her pad in shock.

"What?! Quinn, in the 3 years we've been on our own, you didn't think to tell me this? You've been doing double the laundry all this time and silently hating me for it?!"

Rachel sounds so absolutely scandalized at this revelation that it's comical. That's why Quinn can't stop herself from spilling the next bit of information, just to see Rachel's response.

"Well, actually….I've never done laundry a day in my life. Annie comes by once every two weeks, while you're in Dance 4, and she does it for me."

Rachel is speechless. Annie? Sweet Annie who'd worked for the Fabrays since Quinn was 4 was doing their laundry and apparently always had been?

"QUINN! Are you kidding me?! You make Annie come all this way to do our _laundry_?"

Quinn scoffs at this.

"Oh please. Like she's so inconvenienced. She literally takes the helicopter Rachel. It's a 2 hour flight every other week and she's never told me as much but I'm pretty sure she stays for an extra day to shop or catch a show. Surely on my father's dime. So let's not pity her."

Rachel laughs lightly.

Quinn is probably right. Annie had managed to wrap the Fabrays around her finger long, long ago.

If Rachel recalls correctly, when they were 10, Quinn and her parents took a trip to Austria for a family vacation and though there was no reason to do so, they took Annie with them. Even Rachel didn't get to go on that particular trip, but Annie had somehow managed to convince Russell that she would be needed while they were away. According to Quinn, she wasn't needed at all. In fact, she had apparently shopped and dined the days away, all on Russell Fabray's dime.

"Well, geez! Nevermind then. Okay, I will do the laundry I guess….but umm…" Rachel tries to think of what all she would like from Quinn. There's so much that Quinn already does, but she supposes it wouldn't be bad to put everything down explicitly.

"I want you to do our taxes and manage our money. I know right now we virtually have none, but when we do, I want to make sure that it's saved and properly invested and I trust you with that."

Quinn appears flattered and nods, her cheeks blushing lightly.

"Well…thank you. Of course I'll take care of all the finances. Would you mind too much if I asked that we go out at least once a week? I know you hate going out and parties and stuff but I love it and I love going out with you and if we were married, I wouldn't feel right about just leaving you here. So just once a week Rach? For me?"

Rachel doesn't want to be forced to go out once a week. Rachel doesn't want to be forced to drink or socialize in public, especially with Quinn's friends. They're so artsy and eclectic or smart and stoic and they look at her like she's beneath them because they too come from wealthy families.

But when she looks at Quinn she can see that this is what Quinn needs, and Rachel is determined to give her that. So she acquiesces.

They continue on like this for nearly two hours. By the time Rachel suggests they order Chinese they've got ridiculous things on the pad like how Quinn is entirely in charge of decorating if/when they get a new place because she can't stand Rachel's taste in décor, but Rachel has the final say on where they move to if/when the time comes.

But because Quinn conceded to something as serious as where they create their home, she wins the argument about whether they will be an Apple or PC couple.

At one point during the debate, Quinn becomes so frustrated with the disagreement that she storms off. But Rachel, of course, follows.

"All I'm saying is that I don't understand why we even have to choose!" Quinn throws herself on her bed and screams into her pillow.

"RACHEL! We look ridiculous if you have an iPhone and a mac but I have a PC and an Xbox that I'm forced to hook up to your stupid Apple TV or whatever. It's just ridiculous and if we have people over they'll think we're fucking stupid."

Rachel still didn't understand. She didn't even know what an Xbox was. She had never even seen Quinn use such a box. And she still didn't see how any of this was relevant to the function of their relationship.

_But if I don't understand it, then does it even matter to me enough to fight her on it? _

No. It didn't matter to her at all. Really, none of this arguing was necessary.

So she gave in.

They would be a PC couple because according to Quinn, security wise, Windows was a better product.

And on Rachel's list at the very bottom just before they stop for dinner, she adds for the both of them that if they fight over something and the issue doesn't matter to one of them, then the person who is indifferent must give in, assuming there are no harms in doing so.

Quinn agrees easily and they both dig into dinner.

But while they're eating, Quinn brings up the question on both of their minds.

"Soooooo, when should we do this?"

Rachel doesn't need to ask her what she means.

"I don't know. I was thinking maybe we should wait until we're out of college."

Quinn nods and picks up a vegan potsticker with her chop sticks and puts in on Rachel's plate, giving her the last piece.

"Yeah, that's a good idea. We don't want this to seem out of the blue. Wanna set a date now? We could just do it after we both graduate. That way we can be married around the same time that you have to move out of your dorm? That seems most practical, you know?"

"Yeah, that's probably a good idea." Rachel bites her lip and looks down at the last potsticker.

"Are you sure Rach? I mean, I'm open to a discussion about it. It's your wedding too."

Quinn laughs and expects Rachel to do the same, but she doesn't. So Quinn gently puts her chop sticks down and reaches for Rachel's hands.

Up until now, she has rarely ever tried to hold Rachel's hands but lately, it just seems like the right thing to do in these moments. It also doesn't hurt that Rachel's hands are soft and warm.

Rachel allows Quinn take her hands, but refuses to look her in the eye. She's unsure of the moment that she became so unsure of herself around Quinn.

"Rachel, talk to me. What's wrong?" Rachel sighs softly and focuses on her hands in Quinn's.

"Quinn…this just… isn't how I imagined it."

Quinn opens her mouth to reply but she is cut off.

"This isn't how I imagined my future. I know it probably sounds silly to you, but _I've_ been planning this day since I was a little girl. I imagined a beautiful white dress with a long train. I pictured this beautiful winter wonderland wedding. I pictured inviting all of my high school bullies, people like Joey and Sebastian that labeled me as this foolish, unlovable loser. I would invite them all to my big huge wedding to prove to them that there is someone out there that loves me. I imagined my fathers walking me down the aisle to a husband that I had been dating for at least a year. I imagined vows that were honest and heartfelt. I imagined something…_real_."

Rachel looks up at her as she says that final word.

Real.

Rachel wanted something…real.

Quinn is frozen.

She has forgotten. So many things.

She knows Rachel better than she knows anyone else and yet she has forgotten who Rachel is.

Rachel is a strong, confident woman. But only in one aspect: her work.

Outside of work, Rachel is a sweetheart. She is shy and timid. And more than anything, Rachel is real.

Rachel has never once lied about who she is. She's never lied about her passions, even when those passions included My Little Pony (10th grade) and shirts with cats wearing birthday hats (12th grade). She has never been willing to hide who she is for anyone, for any reason.

Rachel Berry has always been honest and genuine so, of course, she would have a problem with this –

This what?

_This hoax, _Quinn says to herself. But she can't in good conscience call this a hoax. It's just a preferable option to Quinn being alone for the rest of her life.

But more than that, spending her life with Rachel by her side is her only way to guarantee that Rachel gets everything that she deserves. It's the only way to guarantee that Rachel is happy.

So no, this isn't real. They haven't been happily dating for years. They hadn't fallen madly in love beneath the stars like Rachel had probably dreamed of. Quinn didn't come home with flowers for no other reason than being in love with Rachel. She hadn't planned a romantic night for her and Rachel so that she could propose. And she hadn't given any long speech about how she just couldn't bear to be without Rachel before begging Rachel to marry her.

No, none of this was real.

But Quinn's desire to make Rachel's dreams come true was very real and very prominent.

So, based on that, Quinn decided she could pretend. For Rachel's sake, she could pretend to care about a big fancy wedding and she could be romantic. She could create this illusion that they were a happy, normal couple if that's what Rachel wanted.

Quinn opens her mouth to say as much, but she stops herself. She imagines that telling Rachel "Yeah, I'll pretend to be in love with you to make this shit seem real" will not help the situation.

Quinn realizes that the only way that she can possibly give Rachel what she's looking for is to play the part of the loving fiancée. And she can't tell Rachel that's what she's doing because then it won't feel _real_. She just has to do it.

_Alright, just act like you're into all of this. Anything to make it feel real for her. You can do that. _

Quinn looks up at Rachel and squeezes her hands.

"Rachel, my love for you _is_ real. And what we have _is_ real…in its own way. So don't think that just because we've agreed to this that you mean nothing to me. I care about what you want here. We're doing this so that we can both have what we want, so if you want a huge winter wedding in 30 degree weather, let's do it. If you want to invite high school bullies, or Madge the janitor, or the fucking pope, let's do it!" Rachel laughs gently and squeezes Quinn's hands in her own.

Quinn is encouraged by this and moves her hand so that their fingers lace together.

Perfectly, Rachel and Quinn both note.

"My point is that this is _your _wedding. Your fathers are still going to walk you down the aisle, you can still wear the white dress, and we can still do our own vows. Whatever you want Rach, I want. So tell me, when do _you_ want to get married?"

Rachel strokes her thumb over Quinn's hands gently as she mulls over the question.

"Well, seeing as this is going to be our anniversary every year, I just want to pick something special. Unfortunately, we don't have a date that we started dating or a date when you first told me you loved me or anything so we need something that holds meaning for us."

Quinn takes one hand back so that she can resume eating, and considers all the dates that are important to them.

"What about the day we graduated high school? That was kind of a big deal."

Rachel's look of disgust makes it perfectly clear to Quinn that graduation isn't good enough.

"Ooookay," Quinn prepares to try again, but Rachel cuts her off with excitement. "Oh! Quinn! What about the time we went to our first Broadway show? That was fun, right?"

Quinn shrugs, "Yeah, that was fun, but do you seriously want to tell people 'We picked this date to get _married _because we saw our first Broadway show on the same date'? That's so cheesy! And it's not special for both of us, really…just you." Quinn is apprehensive to say the last part because after vowing to do anything to make Rachel happy, she feels like turning down her ideas directly contradicts that.

But Rachel agrees with her easily, unoffended.

"Yes, I suppose you are right." Rachel and takes a bite of rice.

The both eat their last few bites in silence deep in thought. When they're both finished, Quinn gets off the couch and collects their trash to toss it away.

At this point, it's almost 10pm and both girls begin to prepare for bed without much discussion.

The routine is familiar as they both prepare to end their day. They move around each other effortlessly, sharing the bathroom and sink space.

As Rachel places her toothbrush back in its holder, Quinn lays in bed pretending to read, but really too focused on trying to think of a date. Trying to think of something special that they'd shared together.

Rachel crawls in on her side and turns off her light while Quinn leaves hers on, as she always does, so she can read a chapter of her most recent book before bed.

Rachel would like to sleep, but she too is kept up trying to find a date. There has to be something that they've shared together in the course of 21 years, she thinks.

Just as Rachel is preparing to give up and succumb to sleep, Quinn gently calls out to her.

"Rach?"

"Mmm?" She turns to face Quinn's side of the bed.

"Remember that time in high school when my parents wanted to go on vacation to Montreal for a week but couldn't because I would've been home alone?"

For a moment, Rachel has no idea what Quinn is talking about. But then, she remembers. She remembers and the memories come back so quickly and fill her with so much warmth that she asks herself how she could've possibly forgotten about that week.

"Of course I remember. They wanted to go so badly and eventually we convinced them to just go without you. But they insisted that because you were 'just 16', they wanted someone to stay with you."

"So of course, I chose you." Quinn finishes.

"And so the whole week, we were virtually on our own. We ordered take out and watched movies and played karaoke the whole week! And Annie was supposed to check in on us every day but she actually only came by once so we never did anything productive after school!" Rachel says as she sits up and leans against the headboard of the bed and turns towards Quinn.

"Hey hey! We also managed to knuckle down and do homework!" Quinn says indignantly.

"Oh my gosh! Quinn!" Rachel reaches out and pushes Quinn's shoulder playfully. "No! _I _did the homework and _you_ copied off me!"

"Okay! But the point is," Rachel is laughing so loudly that Quinn has to almost yell over her but she doesn't mind. In fact, she's laughing as well at their teenage antics. "THE POINT RACHEL is that we spent that whole week together and on Friday night, our last night alone, you looked over at me and do you remember what you said to me?"

Quinn looks over at Rachel, who's wiping the tears from her eyes from laughing so hard. She shakes her head "no".

"You said…you said 'This week was the best. Staying up late with you, watching movies, being silly all the time, just the two of us.'" Just as Rachel recovers, she finds herself laughing again at Quinn's nasally, excited voice that is supposed to be hers.

"And then…" Quinn waits until their laughing subsided, "Then you laid your head on my shoulder and said 'I could do this forever'. And I said—"

But Rachel remembers now. And Rachel knows exactly what Quinn said next. And so she finishes Quinn's sentence for her.

"You said, 'Oh yeah. That would be a dream come true.'" Rachel almost whispers.

"And it is Rach." She doesn't break eye contact with her as she reaches out for Rachel's hand. She finds it and immediately intertwines their fingers together. "Getting to spend my life with you, in its own special way, is a dream come true."

Rachel blushes and moves over to lean her head on Quinn's shoulders, like she did so many years ago on Quinn's couch when they had a similar conversation.

"And do you remember what day that was Rachel?"

Rachel tries to think of the day. She tries to remind herself of the surroundings and what they were doing and what the weather was like and then she remembers. Why Quinn's parents left town in the first place.

"Oh my gosh, it was Valentine's Day." Rachel giggles, turning her face into Quinn's shoulder smelling her pajama shirt, which is really just one of Rachel's NYADA shirts. It smells of fabric softener and Quinn.

"Yup, February 14th."

Rachel and Quinn have never had a boyfriend for Valentine's Day. They also never asked anyone to be their date for Valentine's Day. In elementary school, the whole class was their valentine, as they were forced to make everyone feel included. A rule that Rachel always appreciated. In high school, they spent the day watching everyone else get gifts from their significant others while taking bets on how much longer the relationships were going to last, then in college they always ordered in and spent the evening together.

So, it only seemed right that they would continue this tradition.

"How does that sound, Rach? Be my forever Valentine?"

Rachel squeezes her hand and nods. "Absolutely. Would you be _my _forever Valentine Quinn Fabray?"

"It would be a dream come true." Quinn leans over and gently kisses Rachel's cheek. Hoping that she was doing a good job making it all feel _real_ for Rachel.

Rachel blushes again and attempts to get her mind off of the warm lips pressed against her cheeks by changing the subject.

"Sooooo, we have one more date to decide on…."

Quinn leans over to turn off her own light and lay her book on the nightstand. It's obvious not much reading is going to get done tonight.

"Yeah, what's next? Bring it on!"

"When do we tell our parents? And by our, I mean, yours…"

Quinn can hear the smirk in Rachel's voice as falls back against her pillow. And gives out a long, "Fuuuuuuck_"._

**#######**

**Sooo, I updated the story just fixing a few typos and whatnot. The chapter is still about 4300 words and as suggested by one of the reviewers, I made sure to post the chapter in its entirety. :) This chapter is a bit of a filler, but next up: Telling the Parents! If you enjoyed it, let me know! Suggestions and criticisms always welcome! Thank you so much to everyone who reviewed! You guys are awesome! Until next time! :D **

**Title by Sam Hunt **


	3. They Don't Know About Us

Quinn expects the worst. And gets something even crueler than that.

She expects her parents to be surprised. She expects them to need some time to come around. She expects so much, but receives so very little.

There is silence. For several minutes, the room is silent and the tension is palpable.

She wants to flee. She wants to cower away from her father's unapproving eyes and run and hide in her room, like she used to when she was a child in trouble.

Not that she was in trouble often.

Quinn would never say her father was strict. She would never consider him a hardened man. In fact, he was always quite the opposite. Loving, kind, forever doting upon his only daughter.

And if asked who played the greatest role in her life growing up, she wouldn't think twice about naming him as opposed to her mother, or even Annie, who had been around for as long as Quinn could remember to keep her well fed and clean and clothed.

She could never understand why she chose him as her greatest influence when he hadn't even been there to teach her to ride a bike, or swim, or any of the other things Quinn supposed dads taught their daughters. Yet, despite his many absences, she looked to him first. For advice, for approval, for guidance and support. But she could never figure why that was.

But now she knows. Now she understands. The reason why he's had such great influence, the reason why he's played such a pivotal role in her development is because her life is built on his influence.

Quinn has never felt a pressure to impress him because it has always been a pre-established, unspoken agreement between them. Quinn was created to follow in her father's footsteps in every conceivable way.

Russell had subtly hinted at this when he signed four year old Quinn up for piano against her wishes, much like he was at a young age. But she had learned to love it, so she had never harbored ill feelings towards him over it.

He had sent her to the exact same private school, known for its commitment to academic excellence, even after she expressed her interest in public school with Rachel. But he had also paid for Rachel to gain an education there as well, so she was happy to go. She had many of the same teachers as him, except they were older and probably even sterner, but she can't deny that they played a monumental part in her getting accepted to MIT.

She cheered for the same Excelsior Falcons football team that her father had played for during his four years of high school and those were the best years of her life. And though she turned down MIT, her father's Alma Mater, she was still obtaining a degree in Business and Economics from NYU, just like him.

She had even gone a step further and double majored in Comparative Literature, but he had yet to even acknowledge that accomplishment.

She supposed he never would. Especially not after this.

"I'm sorry, I must have misheard you Quinn. You're intending to do _what_?"

Quinn recognizes this tone. Though she is often very accommodating to her father's wishes, sometimes when they butt heads, he brings out this warning tone. He is giving her one chance to re-evaluate her statement. One chance to think twice about what's she's saying and what consequences may ensue if she continues along this dangerous path.

At this point, Quinn would usually take it back. She would backtrack and give her father something he wanted to hear about how it was all a joke. How she had actually met a nice, handsome man whom her father would greatly approve of.

But that would hardly be the truth. The truth is

"Rachel and I are getting married."

Her father stares at her for only a second longer before he picks up his fork and knife and resumes his meal. The sound of cutlery clinking against the plates is loud in the dining room. But Ms. Fabray breaks that silence shortly after and resumes eating herself.

"Wow! I…I didn't realize you two were…involved." It's obvious to Quinn that her mother does not know what to say. She wants to be supportive, that much is evident in her light tone, but she isn't sure how to go about conveying that support because this is all so sudden. Her mother says as much.

"This all seems so out of the blue. But, a congratulations is still in order!" Mrs. Fabray smiles widely and Quinn can tell that, though she is confused and surprised, she is determined to make up for her husband's lack of excitement and general interest.

She nearly slams down her fork and claps her hands as she yells, "Annie! ANNIE! Bring us a bottle of champagne! The Bollinger we received for Christmas! And four glasses!"

"Oh, Mrs. Fabray, that's not necessary!" Rachel tries to stop her from wasting what is surely a thousand dollar bottle of champagne on their sham of a wedding, but she will hear nothing of it.

"Nonsense! I have only one daughter and she's getting married! To such a lovely young lady, no less! Oh! ANNIE!"

Just as she yells again, Annie comes from the kitchen with a bottle and four glasses, as requested. She gently pops the bottle open and pours a half glass for everyone. She distributes the glasses, thanked by only Rachel and Quinn as usual, then she stands back as Judy prepares to make a toast.

"To my darling girls, I am so happy that you found each other! And though this comes as a complete surprise, I wish you a marriage as happy and everlasting as my own!"

Quinn almost snorts but Rachel reaches for Quinn's hand quickly and squeezes it as a sort of warning, a way of telling her that she shouldn't upset the only parent that seems to be supporting this decision.

They all lift their glasses, even Russell, and they take a drink.

The rest of dinner passes quickly but not quietly, with her mother chiming in asking nonstop questions regarding the wedding.

Quinn and Rachel take turns answering them, and Quinn has to admit, though her father is clearly displeased, her mother's excitement starts to rub off on her.

But then that excitement dies because her next question catches both Quinn and Rachel off guard.

"It may be none of my business, but I just have to know! When did all of this start?"

Rachel stops chewing. Quinn stops breathing.

Quinn looks up and finds both her mother and her father awaiting an answer. She looks over at Rachel. Lost. And Rachel takes that as her cue.

"Well, I don't want to speak for Quinn, but I would say that this has been a long time coming. I fell in love with her so long ago that I can't even pinpoint the moment, but I just never realized it."

Quinn is impressed and relieved. Rachel is handling this just fine. She just has to listen and nod. Because Rachel is doing great.

"But we officially started dating about a month ago."

Quinn freezes. She has praised Rachel too soon.

They hadn't really had the forethought to discuss a "story" for their relationship. Quinn didn't think about any of that in advance, and if Rachel did, she certainly didn't mention it.

A few moments ago, having a pre-established story was unnecessary.

But now? Now, Rachel has messed up everything with that one sentence.

She's afraid to take her eyes off of Rachel. She's terrified to turn her head and look into her father's eyes. Because she knows exactly what she'll find.

_Doubt. Distrust. Disbelief. _

And she knows she's right when her father finally speaks up.

"One month, you say? Then it seems sudden to be thinking of marriage."

Rachel doesn't skip a beat. Probably because she doesn't recognize this particular tone of Russell Fabray. Otherwise, she would be as frozen as Quinn.

"Oh, I know! That's what I said when she proposed, but…then I realized that we've already known each other for 21 years. How many fiancées can say that?" Rachel looks over at Quinn smiling to confirm that she's doing this right, but she notices her pale skin and furrowed brow.

She tries to catch Quinn's eyes, but they're glossy and staring at her plate.

Judy coos again and proceeds to ask Rachel more questions about their wedding plans.

Rachel wants a winter wedding.

Rachel wants 3 bridesmaids.

Rachel wants a tropical honeymoon.

Rachel wants to move into a nice apartment in Manhattan.

Quinn just wants to die.

###

She thinks that she has almost escaped. She thinks that because of the late hour after dinner, she will be able to avoid being pulled aside by her father.

But just as she yawns and prepares to tell her mother and father that they should head to bed, Russell requests her presence in his office. When Judy asks where they are going, he wraps his arm around Quinn shoulder, smiling broadly and asks,  
"Can't a father pull his daughter aside for a congratulatory drink?" Rachel and Judy just laugh and go back to their second glass of champagne, unsuspecting.

Once the ladies are out of sight, he drops his arm from around her and leads the way to his office.

It smells faintly of cigars and usually Quinn finds this comforting but today, as Russell closes the door behind them, she is terrified. She feels trapped.

He says nothing, but pulls out two glasses and pours a shot of scotch into each one.

He scoots one gently towards her and though she has no intention of drinking with him, she doesn't want to anger him unnecessarily, so she picks up the glass and sits across from him on the other side of the large oak desk.

He takes his first shot and pours another before sitting as well.

Quinn waits quietly, not wanting to be the first to speak. She doesn't have to wait long.

"What the hell do you think you're doing Quinn?"

He sounds exhausted, not angry.

But a chill falls over the room nonetheless. A tension fills the air.

Does she play dumb? Or does she meet him in the middle and address the issue head on?

"What do you mean, dad?"

_Okay, play dumb it is. _

But he sighs deeply and she realizes playing dumb is the absolute wrong approach. Now he is angry.

"What are you doing marrying Rachel?"

So, that's the issue. She can work with this. She has prepared for this in her head. She expected her father to question her sudden taste for women, and she has come up with the perfect speech to ward off any oncoming homophobia.

But as she opens her mouth to spew said speech, her brain stops her. Because it has picked up on something after the fact that she did not catch immediately.

Her father had emphasized the word "Rachel". Not "marrying" to suggest that this was all happening too fast, but "Rachel".

He isn't asking why she's marrying a girl, he's asking why she's marrying _Rachel. _

Quinn is at once offended and her tone reflects it. "I love her. So I asked her to marry me."

Russell sighs.

"Quinn, listen, I understand you and Rachel are friends, and truthfully, I adore her. But…she's not the kind of girl you marry."

He almost sounds sorry to have to say it. But that doesn't make it better. In fact, Quinn is actually more offended than she was previously. Except this time, she's offended on Rachel's behalf.

"What's _that_ supposed to mean?"

There is an edge to her voice that Russell has never heard before. He takes a drink.

Quinn thinks that they shouldn't be having this conversation while he's drinking, but there's nothing she can do to stop it from taking place. He's started the ball rolling and she has no control over it now.

"Quinn, you know what I mean. Voicing it aloud just seems cruel."

This confirms that Quinn is right. Her father has a problem with Rachel specifically. That doesn't sit well with Quinn at all.

"No dad. If there's something wrong with my _fiancé, _I would like to know." She's surprised that the word fiancé comes out so naturally because this is her first time saying it aloud. But the whole sentence comes out crystal clear and her voice doesn't waver once, which surprises the both of them.

Russell decides that if she's going to force his hand then she will have to hear the hard truth.

"Well Quinn, if you want me to perfectly honest, she's hardly who I would've chosen for you myself. Aside from the fact that she's a woman, which I can overlook, she comes from a middle class family and was raised by two fathers, she has…lofty goals at best. I mean, she has no real plans for her future. And she has a degree in…what is it? Dancing around and singing? Where on earth is that going to get her?" Russell must see the absolute anger on Quinn's face because he attempts to clean up his tirade.

"She's a lovely girl Quinn, honestly. But she doesn't compare to you. And I'm speaking objectively here, not as your father. She just doesn't measure up. Her successes, if any, will be miniscule in comparison to what you will accomplish. And of course, marriage is about equality. You need someone of your same caliber."

He takes another drink and realizes, unfortunately, that what was meant to make Quinn feel better has possibly angered her more.

"Dad, how can you say that?! You've seen her sing! She's already better than half the people on Broadway, even without the degree! All she needs to do is catch one producer's eye and she's golden!" Quinn yells, flailing her arms around in disbelief.

Russell scoffs and swishes his drink around.

"And how long do you intend to take care of her before she "catches someone's eye"?" He sneers at her, angered by her audacity to yell at him.

She hears the emphasis on the words and is enraged.

"You know that's not what I mean! She's talented and—"

Russell nearly slams his glass down and runs his hands over his face in frustration.

"And WHAT Quinn? Are you really going to support Rachel until she hopefully finds her way? Are you really going to show up to the Entrepreneur's Gala with a _singer _on your arm? Do you know how silly that sounds?"

Quinn is tired of this conversation. She is angry. Offended. And hurt.

Russell has known Rachel since birth. He has taken both girls to the park to play, waited for them at the bottom of every "big kid" slide. He has soothed Rachel's fears when she cried while staying at Quinn's house overnight for the very first time.

How can he speak as if he doesn't know Rachel at all? How can he speak as if Quinn has just brought home a random girl he has never met before?

Of all the scenarios she anticipated, she didn't expect this.

This time, when she speaks, she can't keep the emotion out of her voice.

"Yes dad. I do intend to support her, financially, emotionally, whatever she needs to make her dreams come true. And yes, I absolutely intend to take her with me to all of those stupid galas. And when they ask me who she is and what she does, I will proudly tell them that my _wife_ is a Broadway Star_. _I'm sorry to tell you, but I'm not ashamed of Rachel. She makes me happy, dad! Genuinely happy! She takes care of me and she supports my dreams, even if she doesn't understand economics and probably has no idea what base pointing pricing is! Even if she can't cook or clean to save her life! I love her! And I think it's really fucking low of you to tell me that marriage is about _equality _when I can't remember the last time you let mom have a say around here."

His upper lip twitches angrily and she knows she should probably stop because she's venturing into dangerous territory, but these words are brewing beneath the surface, and possibly always have been, and they're spewing out like vomit. She couldn't stop if she wanted to.

"I can't remember the last time she did something meaningful around here. You keep her in this huge fucking house and you let her paint the walls and have her book club over but she doesn't work, she doesn't have any money, or any reason to leave this hell-hole without _you_! You aren't equal dad, you know it, I know it, and she probably knows it! And you know what? I hope to God my marriage isn't anything like yours. Because maybe then, Rachel and I will have a shot at actual happiness."

"Happiness Quinn? You've been dating her for a month." He points his glass towards the office door.

"Do you _really _think that that girls cares about anything other than your money? She's going to ride on your coattails all the way to the big stage and leave when a better opportunity comes along and if you think I'm wrong, then you're fooling yourself Quinn."

Quinn has lowered her head, out of what he believes to be resignation to the truth. But really, the truth is that she can't bear to listen to another lie that falls out of his mouth.

She doesn't believe a word that he says because no one is more loyal than Rachel Berry. No one is more committed than Rachel Berry. And whether or not this marriage and this life together is a good idea, she knows that Rachel is going to stick this out. They both are.

And then it occurs to Quinn that this conversation is moot. It won't change anything. Her father is not likely to change his mind. And she can't change hers.

So she stands. Places the glass back on the table. And cuts her father off.

"And proposing a month into the relations—"

"Dad stop."

He finally looks at her and sees that she's standing. Not one to be outdone, he stands as well.

"I know you're worried dad. I get it. But you obviously don't know her like I do. I'm marrying her. And if you choose to come support us, that would be amazing. If not, then I'll be sure to send you and mom pictures and whatnot. You can hang them up or burn them for all I care."

She can't help but tear up over the fact that her parents may not come to her wedding, but she blinks back the tears and presses forward, determined not to look weak. She won't give him the satisfaction of seeing her like this.

She starts heading towards the door and prepares to say goodnight when he is the one to cut her off.

"Quinn, if you marry her, fine. If you want to lower your standards and spend your life with her, fine. I can't stop you. But I sure as hell won't be footing the bill for a wedding, just to have to pay for the divorce as well."

It takes Quinn almost a full minute to realize that her father has tried to use money to entice her into siding with him. He has taken something away from her that he knows will make it difficult to follow through with what Rachel has described as her dream wedding in an attempt to get her to reevaluate this decision.

He expects her to think twice about leaving or following through with the engagement.

He is sorely disappointed, however.

She resolves yet again not to let her anger, or worse her sadness, show.

"Fine dad. We'll pay for it ourselves."

This is not at all what he's expecting. He was expecting a fight. Quinn has always been a fighter.

So to spur on such a fight, he says the only thing he can think of.

"If you turn your back on me Quinn, that's it. You can't come back begging me for money or a job or for sympathy when you realize I was right all along. If you leave, don't bother asking me for a damn thing."

He too is experiencing an awful case of word vomit. He hardly means what he's saying. He doesn't want to do this. He loves Quinn. He doesn't _want _to push her away, he just wants her to see reason.

But he's too prideful to take it back now.

She barely pauses before opening the door. She turns around to look him in the eye one last time and says with a tone of finality, "Don't worry dad. We won't."

###

She checks the living room where she last saw Rachel and her mother, but she finds no one. So she heads up the stairs, taking them two at a time. When she gets to her old childhood bedroom, she again finds no one. She's about to turn around and look elsewhere, when she hears gurgling from the bathroom.

She heads that way hastily and runs right into Rachel who's exiting the bathroom with her pajamas on.

Rachel shrieks and Quinn laughs lightly at Rachel.

"Just me Rach, just me!" Rachel rests one hand over her chest to calm her thumping heart and uses the other to playfully push Quinn in the shoulder.

"Quinn, you scared the day lights out of me! You should announce yourself!"

She's yelling, but there's a playful smile on her face. Until she sees Quinn's face. Her lips are tilted upwards in a small smile, but her eyes are a different story.

"Sorry, I just—" But the tears that Quinn has been holding back, the emotion that she's worked so hard to keep inside in front her father, all of it threatens to come flooding out of her, so she takes a deep breath and looks up at the ceiling.

"Quinn, are you okay?"

She shakes her head no, but when she fails to respond verbally, Rachel places both of her hands on her cheeks and forces Quinn to look at her. And when they make eye contact, it's just as Rachel feared. Quinn looks lost. Quinn, who is usually so stoic for the both of them, is clearly on the brink of tears.

"Quinn? Talk to me. What did he say?"

She was afraid of this from the moment Russell failed to properly congratulate them at the table. Rachel knew that him pulling Quinn aside would be bad, but he has never made her cry. She is desperate to know what transpired behind closed doors, but Quinn gives nothing away.

Instead Quinn turns away before she can fall apart in Rachel's arms.

Rachel hardly has time to register that Quinn has left the threshold of the restroom when she is speaking again.

"Get your stuff together Rachel. We're leaving." That…is not what Rachel was expecting to hear.

"W-what? Why would we leave? And where are we going Quinn? It's almost midnight. It's way past my bedtime actually and I really do need to rest my vocal—"

"You can sleep in the car Rachel. But we are _not_ staying here," Quinn snaps.

Her tone is angry and final and Rachel almost refuses as a matter of principle because she is asked so harshly, but then Quinn whispers "Please Rach." And she knows that this isn't her Quinn talking. This is Mr. Fabray's doing. He has said something, done something to make her like this.

So she obliges.

She haphazardly packs up her suitcase that is far too heavy for just a weekend getaway. She doesn't even bother changing out of her pajamas. It's obvious by the way that Quinn is standing by the door with her bag and purse slung over her shoulder that she's eager to escape these stiffing walls. She's eager to be anywhere but here.

When Rachel quietly says she's ready, Quinn looks up from her phone and approaches Rachel to take her suitcase.

"Okay, let's go. I texted Annie and she said we can borrow her car. We'll stay at a hotel tonight and leave first thing in the morning."

Rachel nods, but says nothing as they make their way down the spiraling stairs. There is no one around. Not a sound to be heard. Rachel wonders briefly if Mrs. Fabray is aware of whatever has taken place. She wonders if she is talking to her husband about it now, pleading with him to apologize. Or maybe she's just silently letting here family fall apart, saying nothing, as usual.

_She may not even know, _Rachel thinks. Which prompts her to tell Quinn as the reach the foyer, "We should leave a note. For your mom. I don't want her to worry."

Quinn rolls her eyes, but acknowledges that Rachel is probably right so she reaches into her purse for a pen. She finds a piece of mail on the table and quickly jots down a note as Rachel slips on her flats.

_Mom, _

_Rach and I left. We're headed back to NY. I can't stay somewhere that my fiancé isn't welcome. I love you and I hope to see you for graduation. _

Quinn doesn't second guess the next part, ready to be done with her father. For good. She scribbles hastily because she knows that if she doesn't hurry, Rachel will wander over to see what's taking her so long.

_Dad, _

_I won't be sorry for loving Rachel or choosing her to be my wife. I can never be sorry for that. I'm just sorry that you won't get to share the memories with us on our big day. But you're wrong about her dad. She's going to make it. And I'm going to be right by her side when she does. And we're going to do it all __without__ you. _

_Quinn_

She reads over the note one final time, then puts the pen back in her purse. But as she does, her credit card catches her eye.

Well, not hers exactly. And with so much anger and hurt coursing through her, if it isn't 100% hers, Quinn realizes she doesn't want it. She takes out both of her credit cards.

One is for leisure and the other is for emergencies, but both are attached to her father's accounts, so she wraps them up with the note.

She turns to Rachel and gives her a nod. Rachel extends her hand for Quinn to take and she doesn't hesitate to grab it. They grab Annie's keys from the hook labeled with her name and make their way out of the garage door to the right of the front door.

They find Annie's Lexus easily, surely a gift from her father, which makes her almost want to take a cab. Rachel climbs in the passenger seat as Quinn puts their bags in the trunk. She climbs in as well and neither one speaks as Quinn backs out of the garage.

They drive out of the Cambridge suburb and head towards JFK. She knows there are several hotels near Harvard University and heads that way.

She reaches over and blindly grabs Rachel's hand. Rachel turns from the window and looks at their fingers laced together.

She wants to break the silence but she knows that Quinn uses the silence to think. She isn't as intimidated by the quiet as Rachel.

But as they're sitting at a light, Rachel can't take it anymore. She has to speak. But what comes out, though true, isn't at all what she had in mind.

"I don't know what your father said to you Quinn but know that I really do love you. And I don't regret doing this."

Quinn can't help the tears that follow. She doesn't speak. She can't.

How does Rachel always manage to say exactly what she needs to hear?

Quinn has, at this point, less than $4,000 to her name. She has no clear future, as she is certain her father won't be inviting her to work at Fabray Industries now. She has no way of supporting herself long term, let alone Rachel. But she _has_ Rachel. And that seems to outweigh everything.

She feels Rachel's soft warm lips press against her hand and she swears that a weight is lifted off of her shoulders. The light turns green but she doesn't move. There is no one behind her. There is no rush.

So she stares at Rachel for a moment. Drinking her in. Her sleepy brown eyes and her hair that's already braided, ready for bed. Her silk pajamas, with a top to match the pants. Her gold flats on her tiny feet that in no way match the outfit. A red scarf around her neck to "protect her vocal chords" from the night's chill.

Quinn realizes that she can't wait to marry Rachel. She can't wait to call this hot mess her own.

And just to spite her father, Quinn decides that not only are they going to be just fine without him, but they are going to thrive. But as she thinks that, she realizes that they won't thrive if they spend even one night at the Charleston, one of the more expensive hotels in the area. She pulls out of the valet area and back onto the street.

"Where are we going now?" Rachel is sleepy and she's becoming whiny. Quinn decides now is a terrible time to tell Rachel that she's been cut off/cut herself off from her father's billions.

"Rach, one day I promise I'm going to show you all the finer things in life. But tonight…I'm going to show you what a motel 6 looks like."

Rachel rips her hand out of Quinn's and turns her entire body to face Quinn.

"OH DEAR GOD! LUCY QUINN FABRAY! WHAT HAVE YOU DONE?!"

Quinn lets out a loud laugh at her dramatics as Rachel bangs her head on the window.

If all of this turns out to be a mistake, it'll be the best mistake she's ever made.

**###################**

**5,000 words. And a whole week of agonizing over this chapter. As always, I hope you enjoyed it! A few less reviews on the last chapter so if you guys have any suggestions to make the story better or things you'd like to see played out, please review and let me know! Thank you to everyone who reviewed, your comments always make my day. Next up, we'll have some much needed fluff! Until next time! :) **

**Title by One Direction **


	4. How Good Is Your Love

**Hey, I know it's unusual to hear from me first, but there has been a little confusion about the time and setting of the story, so I just wanted to clear that up. In the middle of a chapter, you may see a **###, **this signifies that the time and setting may have jumped forward. In the last chapter, there were a few of them, but all in the same setting. This time, there is a change in time and setting. So just be aware that when you see the hashtags, there has been some time between what has just taken place and what is about to happen, so the setting may also have changed. If this is too confusing, I would love feedback on a better way to establish a new time or setting. **

**Okay, enough of my rambling, happy reading!**

**######**

"So we're _poor?" _Rachel says with such disdain. But Quinn quickly reminds her, "Not _we,_ just…me."

She laughs nervously hoping that will lighten the rather heavy mood.

Quinn has just dropped the bomb that Russell Fabray will no longer be funding their wedding. Or their lives, for that matter.

Rachel is sitting at her desk in her dorm doing homework that has accumulated over the weekend as Quinn lays on Rachel's bed, playing on her phone.

Rachel sighs deeply. "I'm 50% of our _we, _Quinn. So I'm 50% poor?" Quinn looks over at Rachel to gauge her seriousness.

Ironically enough, she looks 50% serious/50% joking.

Quinn turns on her side and props her head up with her right arm.

"Rachel, really, you don't have to worry about the money. I'm in charge of the money stuff, remember?"

"Yes, but Quinn, I think it's vital that we have a discussion about what to do now that we're on our own. Now that we don't have your father to fall back on, I just worry that—"

Quinn falls back onto the bed and sighs loudly, clearly frustrated.

"Rachel okay! I get it! I fucked this up for us and this throws a wrench in everything, but I'm going to fix it, okay?! This is like the third time you've brought him up and it's getting super annoying. "

Quinn closes her eyes tightly to keep from crying and places her arm over her eyes so that Rachel can't see.

She keeps her eyes closed and focuses on her breathing, but soon feels a weight on top of her. Rachel is straddling her waist and she pulls her arms away from her eyes which forces Quinn to look straight up at her.

"Quiiiiiin. Listen, I'm not mad at you, I'm not blaming you. I just need a plan. _We _need a plan."

"But what if I don't have a plan, Rach?" Quinn sounds so helpless.

Rachel wants so badly to make it better.

She stretches her legs out over Quinn's and lays her body down next to Quinn's. She places her head next to Quinn's on her own pillow, snuggles up to Quinn and wraps her arm around her waist.

Quinn instinctively lets her arm wrap itself around Rachel's shoulder to keep her close.

They've been in this position before, but it's never felt this real or this…intimate.

"It's okay Quinn. I understand that your part of the deal means handling the financial stuff, but that doesn't mean we can't talk about it. It doesn't mean you have to solve every problem yourself. It just means that you get the final say about what we do with our money. But normal couples still talk. And that's what we have to start thinking of ourselves as, a normal couple."

Quinn turns her head towards Rachel and lifts her left hand to clear the hair from Rachel's face.  
"Yeah? And what does being a normal couple look like?"

Rachel grabs Quinn's hand and laces their fingers together.

"It looks like this. But all the time. 24/7. We're going to spend the rest of our lives doing this, so we might as well get used to it. So we hold hands, and kiss for no reason at all, and we call each other cute names."

"Okay, okay. And does being a normal couple also include speaking up for each other at disgusting times?"

Rachel looks up at Quinn, slightly confused.

"Well, of course you would speak up for me and defend my honor—"

Quinn laughs softly and brushes her thumb over Rachel's hand.

"No Rach, I mean like, when one of your Broadway friends invites us out to dinner and says "Hey, try this hotdog Rachel", do I then speak up and say 'Oh, she doesn't eat meat', like all the other gross normal couples?"

Rachel laughs aloud at this, knowing that Quinn is entirely kidding. They have discussed on several occasions after an evening out with friends and their significant others about how unnecessary it is for the boyfriend or girlfriend to chime in on the other person's behalf. But she indulges Quinn anyway.

"Oh yes! In fact, I would expect you to take the offered hotdog and fling it across the room."

Quinn snorts.

"I'll do you one better, I'll see your hotdog flinging and I'll raise you. I'll bop whoever it is on the head with said hotdog and then we'll storm out of the establishment together."

Rachel swoons.

"My hero."

Quinn kisses her on the top of the head.

As she pulls away, Rachel leans up and Quinn thinks that she's going to kiss her, but she shocks Quinn when she licks her chin.

Quinn immediately pulls away, disgusted as she wipes her wet chin.

"What the hell was that?!" She's yelling, but she's laughing along with Rachel.

"Come on, normal couples do that all the time!" Quinn is slack jawed.

"Um, that is definitely not a thing!" Rachel smirks.

"Well, it is now! I am officially instituting it as a relationship thing we do!"

Quinn squints her eyes mischievously and Rachel sits up and puts up her hands.

"Now Quinn, let's be rational about this…"

"Hey Rach," Rachel recognizes this tone as sly and playful and knows that nothing good can come of this. She starts to inch away from Quinn off the bed.

"You know what else normal couples do?" Quinn scoots off the bed and walks towards Rachel as she backs away, "They have tickle fights Rachel. And I think we are looooong overdue."

Before she even gets the last word out, Quinn charges for Rachel and grabs her around the waist before she can escape, flinging her into the air and gently tossing her on the bed.

She throws her body over Rachel's to hold her in place and runs her fingers along Rachel's sides as they both giggle like maniacs.

"Is this normal enough for you Rachel?!" Rachel thrashes around screaming "yes, yes" until Quinn's fingers cease their movement.

Quinn brushes her hair back from her eyes as their breathing evens out. She gathers her hair and, using the hair tie around her wrist, she puts her hair in a high ponytail.

When she's finished, Quinn notices that Rachel's hands have moved to her hips so she makes a bold move herself.

Quinn leans down, her hands on either side of Rachel's face, so that she's hovering just over Rachel's face. Their lips nearly brush as their breathing picks back up.

Rachel finds that she can't wait anymore to feel Quinn's lips so she closes the distance between them. Their lips press together gently for a few moments and Quinn prepares to pull away but Rachel follows her eagerly and deepens the kiss.

Quinn doesn't expect the force and immediately opens her mouth in surprise, but that only leads to Rachel's tongue brushing lightly against hers.

When she gets over the initial shock, she finds that she likes this. A lot.

She pushes forward herself and reaches out to explore Rachel's mouth. And the moan that Rachel emits when Quinn bites Rachel's lower lip is euphoric to Quinn's ears.

The amount of want coursing through her right now is almost frightening. She can't justify this want. No she's not in love with Rachel, but _damn, _Quinn thinks to herself as she pulls away and looks down at Rachel breathlessly. Rachel falls back to the pillow, a faint blush coating her cheeks.

"Wow. Quinn. Wow." Rachel is left speechless as she licks her lips.

Quinn smiles lazily.

"You're not so bad yourself. Quite the opposite actually."

Quinn lets a huff of air out. Still trying to regulate her breathing. And Rachel notices.

"Rachel Berry. Leaving girls breathless since 1993."

Rachel is smirking.

Quinn is dying in laughter.

This is their normal.

###

"Hey, there's a typo on page six."

"Specifics, Rach?"

"Oh, yeah, um, Clause 8. "If an when" is missing its D."

Quinn chuckles. "Ha, D"

"You can't laugh at heterosexual jokes anymore Quinn. We're lesbians now."

Quinn chuckles again.

"I'll add that to page 12 as an addendum."

Quinn makes a mental note of this change to the contract.

"You're really limiting me with that one, you know."

Rachel scoffs.

"Oh, I'll bet!" She says. But for amusement, Rachel challenges her.

"I bet you don't know single 'straight person' joke!"

"Oh, you're in for a treat!" Never one to back down from a challenge, she thinks quickly and says the first thing that comes to mind. "What did the penis say to the vagina?"

Rachel rolls her eyes at the crude language.

"I don't know, what?"

"See you next Tuesday!" Quinn laughs, but only at the atrocity of her own joke.

"Oh, come on Quinn! That's awful! It's not even funny!"

Quinn laughs at Rachel's obvious disdain for the joke.

"Well it's your fault, Rach. Ask and you shall receive." Quinn shrugs but Rachel doesn't see it. She can't.

"You know what, add that on page 12 too."

"The joke?"

Rachel rolls her eyes but Quinn doesn't see it. She can't.

"Yes Quinn. _The joke_." They both share a laugh at that.

After a few minutes of silence, Quinn chirps up.

"Anything else?"

"Still reading."

"Okay Rach. Jesus. This isn't 50 Shades of Grey. It's not that serious. Just sign the contract."

"I can hardly sign something I haven't read over thoroughly Quinn."

Quinn sighs. Rachel is right. Reading any contract thoroughly before signing is a must. And Rachel is nothing if not thorough.

"Yeah, okay, take your—"

"See! This is why I wanted to read it! Page 11, under contract termination, you have written "By no means and under no circumstances may this contract be terminated"….I'm not saying that either of us is leaving but…this seems like we're boxing ourselves in. What if we both mutually meet someone in 15 years?"

Quinn thinks about this for a moment. "Well, in that case, why get married at all?"

Rachel considers this. Quinn is right, if she thinks that she will meet someone in 15 years that she can trust and love wholeheartedly without any insecurities, then she really shouldn't marry Quinn.

But she doesn't forsee that at all. It's the last thing she can picture actually.

"Yeah, you're right. But still, this is so serious. What if we both agree that for some reason we want to end things? Does this mean we can't get a divorce?"

Quinn nods. "Yes, that's exactly what it means. If I were to file for divorce, you could sue me because the contract clearly forbids it. And vice versa."

"That's a little scary Quinn. I mean, we don't exactly know what the future will entail."

Quinn is growing frustrated with Rachel's second guessing. She's trying to avoid the voices in her head, but they keep murmuring that her father was right. That Rachel is planning an alternative to a life with Quinn. Maybe not now, but someday.

Before she has time to dwell too much, Rachel shrugs her shoulders and flips to the end of the contract.

"I suppose you're absolutely right, I'm not planning on leaving and neither are you, so this is fine. I trust you. And to show you some good faith, I'm going to sign this without even reading the last page."

Rachel's voice is positively scandalous and Quinn smiles into her pillow.

"Okay, so we're good then?"

Quinn reaches over to turn out her light and crawls back into her bed.

"Yes, I believe so. I've signed and with two complete signatures, that means we are officially obligated to be together forever!" Rachel sounds excited and that eases Quinn's fears.

Rachel is excited to spend her life with Quinn. And if Quinn's being perfectly honest, she is too. Being in a "relationship" with Rachel is fun and easy. Almost _too_ easy in fact.

But again, Quinn doesn't dwell. It's nearly 1am and she's desperate to return to bed. She's been desperate since 11:30 when Rachel first called.

"Okay, then in that case. Goodnight Rach."

"Night Quinn. Oh! And thank you for answering my questions. Even though you said you were already up, I know you were in bed. So…." Rachel trails off gently.

Quinn wants to say something snarky about losing sleep, but she's too tired. And maybe, just maybe, a small part of her is enjoying the soft, genuine tone coming through the phone and she doesn't want to ruin the moment. 21 years and yet this isn't a tone Quinn Fabray is familiar with in regards to Rachel.

"You're welcome." She replies softly.

"Okay, I'll let you get back to sleep." As Quinn takes the phone away from her ear, she hears Rachel's parting words.

"Laters baby."

**#######**

**I know it's not nearly as long as the usual chapters, but I wanted to get this out. I didn't get a chance to proofread so I'll go over it later with a fine tooth comb. Fluff isn't particularly my thing, so I hope you enjoyed. As always, feel free to review and leave feedback! You guys are awesome! Until next time! :) **

**Title by Mateo **


	5. Signed, Sealed, Delivered (I

"Fly?"

"Waaaay too expensive. We're 'poor' now Rachel, remember?"

"Drive?"

"Takes too long."

"Train?"

"That's like an 18 hour ride."

How Quinn knows that offhand, she has no idea.

"Bus?"

"Even slower and I'd eat another human being before I set foot on a Greyhound bus."

"Floo powder?" Rachel's grasping at straws now. Quinn is growing frustrated.

"Too unrealistic." Quinn puts down the wooden spoon and turns the stove off. She turns towards Rachel who is sitting at the breakfast bar and leans on the counter across from her. "Rach, look, I know you would rather tell your dads in person, but it's just not feasible right now unless they come here."

"But it's such short notice and they're already coming for Christmas and graduation in May that I couldn't possibly ask them to come a third time."

"Then don't. Just wait until they get here in December. It's only a month away." Quinn goes back to fixing dinner, mumbling to herself. "I'm still confused as to why they visit us for Christmas. You guys are super Jewish."

Rachel is too disappointed to respond.

She doesn't care about Quinn's money (or lack thereof now) and she never has. But she's also never realized how much she's relied on it.

When they first moved to New York, she was constantly homesick, having never been away from her fathers for more than a week. But she had expected that. She had expected to miss them and crave their comfort and advice. She had expected the overwhelming desire to just go _home_.

But what she didn't expect was the absolute feeling of emptiness that filled her heart when she realized that the home she had grown up in was now occupied by a new family.

Both of her fathers were originally from Lima, Ohio and only moved to Boston for work, where they met the Fabrays. But after she graduated from high school, they moved back to their hometown. They couldn't have been more thrilled, but personally Rachel felt even lonelier.

The thought of someone else in her room. The thought of a different family sitting in the den playing board games. She wonders if they put an actual table in the living room as opposed to the baby grand piano they kept their in lieu of a place to eat.

Her fathers moving meant that her homesickness was even worse. And every time that it got to be too much, whenever she couldn't stand to be apart from them any longer, Quinn always bought them both plane tickets to Lima, Ohio.

She had done this on 3 or 4 occasions throughout the years and each time had insisted that Rachel not pay her back. She was selfless like that.

But Quinn can't afford to be selfless like that anymore. Speaking of which,

"Quinn, what _are _we going to do about the money situation? Forget about the wedding and whatnot, how do you intend to even pay the rent on this place?"

She hopes to God that this doesn't spark a conflict. But Quinn is calm as she responds. She sounds like she's even given this some additional thought since they last spoke about it a week ago in her dorm.

"Well, fortunately, my dad paid the rent and utilities for the school year back in August. So we're good until June." She turns towards Rachel, holding the spoon out for her to taste her latest concoction.

Rachel leans forward and opens her mouth willingly.

Whatever it is, it tastes like heaven and she moans around the spoon.

"Mmmm, what is that?"

"It's a red wine and basil sauce for the pasta. Good?"

Rachel nods, appreciating Quinn's ability to turn every dinner into a culinary masterpiece. "Amazing."

"Thank you." Quinn returns her focus on the food, but continues their previous conversation.

"In regards to the current money situation, like I've said, I have about $4,000 in my savings and about $800 in my checking. Not having rent makes it a lot easier to manage. Also, I've created a budgeting plan. If we limit ourselves to $300 for groceries and $150 for leisure activities each month, we'll have about $200 left over from our monthly allowance. Which will allow some leeway for emergencies, knock on wood." And they do. "We'll have to do our best to drive less which should save us on gas. I've found a subway that goes from my place to 31st street, just a few blocks from your dorm so that's a great alternative to waiting in traffic to drop you off in the mornings."

Rachel listens attentively and nods.

Quinn takes her silence as unhappiness. She reaches into the cabinet to grab plates and as she's doling out portions, she speaks again, trying to ease any worries Rachel may be having.

"Rach, I know you hate public transportation, but it doesn't have to be every day. Maybe we can start with once or twice a week until you get familiar with it. And, of course, I'll go with you and we'll figure it out until you get the hang of it."

Though Rachel has ridden the subway on numerous occasions, it has always been with Quinn. As much as she loves New York, as much as living here has been her dream since birth, she has to admit that even 4 years later she is still not very adept at navigating her way through the city. Quinn has always been the one to figure out which train they needed to take and how to pay and where to get off. Rachel, despite her immense attention to detail, can never seem to figure the whole system out. So this is somewhat terrifying. But since they are suddenly lower on funds, sacrifices must be made.

And though Quinn's Maserati is always her first choice, she's happy and eager to help Quinn in any way she can.

"No no. It's okay! I don't mind the subway!" Quinn grabs glasses and pours them each some water.

"You're sure? We can find another way to cut back if you're uncomfortable with the subway."

Rachel shakes her head. Quinn has done so much for her over her short lifetime. This is the least she can do for Quinn.

"No, I promise Quinn. It'll be fine. You'll show me how it works, I'll get the hang of it, and before you know it, I'll be Rachel Berry, Subway Expert."

Quinn chuckles lightly and agrees as she hands Rachel her full plate and glass as they head to the dining room table.

They eat in silence for a few minutes, with Rachel stopping periodically to praise Quinn on her excellent work in the kitchen.

"I am so glad I get to experience this cooking for the rest of my life!" Rachel moans out again.

This statement reminds Quinn of another piece of unfinished business. She gets up from the table and digs through her messenger bag for the small packet of papers and a pen.

"What is that?" Rachel inquires as Quinn sits back down.

"The contract. I've gone through and made all the requested changes. I…I also changed the part about the termination of the contract. You're absolutely right, it is a little frightening. And…I don't want you to feel tied down. We're doing this because we want to, because we prefer this option to any of the alternatives, but I don't want to trap you should you ever change your mind. It doesn't seem fair. So…"

Rachel puts her fork down and looks at Quinn. Really looks. And she loves the caring, thoughtful woman she sees before her. She's pretty sure it's not romantic love, but it's the deepest form of friendship she can think of. And she can't imagine wanting out of a life with her best friend, but she appreciates Quinn giving her the option. She appreciates her concerns being heard.

"Well, thank you…I appreciate you changing that. And of course, I have no intention of leaving. But…thanks. Again."

When they look up and realize they're both blushing for some reason, they share a little laugh.

"Right. You're welcome." She looks back down at her meal. "Anyway, like I said, it's all virtually the same except for the changes you made so no need to look through it again. I proofread meticulously so just sign on page 13 and you're good."

Quinn pushes the pen and packet Rachel's way, already opened to the final page where her own signature is neatly scrawled on the appropriate line. All that's missing is

Rachel's signature to signify that she understands and is willing to abide by the terms addressed in the contract.

Rachel takes the pen and prepares to sign.

"I have to admit, this is a little weird seeing as I thought this was already done."

Quinn shakes her head. "Well, I was too tired to ruin it for you last week, but the contract became null when you disagreed with the outlined terms. You can't make changes in pen on the document but then still sign. I had to edit it first to make it agreeable to both parties, which I did. After you're finished signing," Quinn draws out the last words as Rachel finishes her name with a star at the end, "Grrreat! We are _now_ officially obligated to be married."

Rachel lifts her water glass and Quinn does the same.

"Cheers."

"Cheers." Rachel responds as she clinks her glass against Quinn's. "And congratulations for being engaged to the most talented woman in New York." Rachel is smirking and finds her own statement to be funny.

But Quinn isn't laughing.

Quinn is looking Rachel in the eyes and she just…stares. The moment feels so intense that Rachel can't bear to tear her eyes away from Quinn's.

"Congratulations to me, indeed." Quinn says it so seriously that there is no way Rachel can maintain this eye contact any longer. Her cheeks are flushed completely, her skin is warm, and her heart is so full of love that she can hardly bear it.

She clears her throat and reminds Quinn in a nearly breathless voice that their dinner is getting cold. They both go back to the small portion of food still on their plates which is still completely warm.

After she's found her voice, Rachel speaks up a few minutes later to get them back on track.

"So, you think even without jobs, we'll be alright for the rest of the academic year?"

Quinn is grateful for the safer conversation.

"Oh, yeah. We should be alright. I mean, we may not have too much extra money for clothes and makeup and other luxuries but it's manageable. We'll just have to communicate before we make purchases to make sure we haven't gone over budget."

Just then, Rachel mentally kicks herself for not remembering that Quinn is not the only one with money.

"You know, I feel awful that I've neglected to offer it, but I have a savings too. It's probably only a couple thousand but it's still something."

Quinn shakes her adamantly though.

"No Rach. Hold onto that. That's your money. We'll use that as emergency savings but don't spend it, if possible. I promise, we'll be fine. Like I said, my dad taking care of the rent was a huge blessing in disguise."

"Speaking of your dad….do you know what you're going to do after graduation?"

Rachel knows this may be a sore spot, but she has to ask.

Quinn just throws her focus back into eating. She obviously doesn't want to talk about it. Rachel takes that as a no. Quinn has no idea what she's going to do. She's gone to school for four years and prepared her whole life to work at her father's company. Now that the option to work there no longer exists, Quinn is at a loss.

"Well, think about it like this," Rachel starts, sounding more cheerful than she really feels, "this is a great opportunity for a fresh start." This captures Quinn's attention. She's still playing around with her penne pasta, but it's obvious to Rachel that she's at least listening.

She takes advantage of the opportunity while she can.

"Before you _had_ to study economics and business and you _had_ to take classes about contractual agreements and business…things, but now…._now_ you can do whatever you want!"

"Yeah, but I'm not going to spend another 3 years in school Rach. I can't afford that."

Those words sound so foreign to Quinn. Never in her life has she been _unable_ to afford something. But she quickly reminds herself that she would rather be poor and struggling with Rachel than rich and powerful without her.

"You don't have to Quinn." Rachel puts down her fork and crosses her arms on the table.

"Quinn, you double majored. You're going to have a degree in comparative literature too. You can do a lot with that…right?" Rachel really doesn't know what comparative literature is or what people with a degree in such things even do. But she's knows that Quinn reads often. All the time, in fact. She knows that Quinn is also fluent in French and Spanish and sometimes reads works in those languages and that's got to get her somewhere, right? It has to. Otherwise, what is Quinn going to do with her life?

Quinn shrugs. "Not really, Rach. People typically study comp lit to teach it at a university. That's not something I'm interested in."

Rachel is so confused. Then why would Quinn major in it if she wasn't interested, she wonders. She decides to try a different approach.

"Ooookay, then what _are _you interested in?"

Quinn brings her hand up to rest under her chin as she thinks. What is she interested in?

"Well, I like writing. I always have. I've never really had much time to pursue it but I've always wanted to write a novel or something."

Rachel smiles, realizing that there may be some things she doesn't know about Quinn. Probably because some dreams she's never felt the need to voice aloud because what would be the point? She would never have been able to live them out.

But now, free from expectation, she can.

"That sounds wonderful Quinn. You've read so much that I would bet you could create the perfect novel."

Quinn smiles back softly.

"Yeah, maybe I could."

"No, no maybe's Quinn. If you want to write, I'd support that. And it's a very lucrative business."

"Well, you don't just make a shit ton of money the second you write a book, Rach. You have to have a publisher and they have to think it's good enough to provide you with strong advertising and publicity. It's not an overnight thing and I don't know if I could—"

But Rachel refuses to let Quinn indulge in self-doubt. Though she has never read anything that Quinn is written, she knows what Quinn is capable of. Greatness. Absolute greatness.

"Quinn, if this is what you want, then go after it. There are a million reasons not to, but if it's something you're passionate about, that's the only reason you need to do it."

Quinn loves this girl. So much. And it's so nice to know that Rachel finds Quinn's dreams to be just as significant as her own.

"Then I'll do it. I'll write a book."

"About what?"

"I have no idea." Rachel laughs at that.

"Well, I cannot wait to read it."

Quinn leans across the table to grab Rachel's hand and brings it to her lips for a kiss.

"Of course. And you'll be the first."

Rachel hears those words and her first thought is _I'd love to be your last. _But she keeps that inside because regardless of how close they are, that may just be _too _much.

* * *

"I'll have a tall nonfat caramel macchiato with no whip." She looks over at him. "Did you want anything?"

"Oh..yeah, thanks. I'll have a venti chocolate chip frap, lots of whip."

Quinn hands over the crisp $10 bill for the both of them. As she does so, she remembers that she probably shouldn't offer to pay too often anymore. It's one thing to do it for Rachel because they pretty much share finances now, but paying for her friend's coffee is a kindness she may no longer be able to afford.

Quinn lays her purse an available table as she takes a seat and when the drinks are prepared, Sam joins her.

"I feel like it's been weeks since I've seen you around campus. How have you been?"

Quinn blows on her coffee and looks up at Sam. His hair is longer, which reinforces toher that it has been quite a few weeks since they've had a chance to hang out, but longer hair suits him.

"Fine, I guess. You?" He smiles fondly. He's missed her and her short, straightforward answers.

Sam has known Quinn since freshmen year of college when they shared Business 101 together. It was obvious to him almost immediately that Quinn was good at the whole "business" thing, which he certainly wasn't. He originally befriended her as a means to a passing grade, but eventually their friendship stuck. Even after he realized that business wasn't for him and took up photography instead.

He sips on his coffee and looks at her curiously.

"Just _fine_?"

Quinn sighs. "Yes, just…fine."

He nods, knowing he's not getting much more than that on the issue of _her_ wellbeing, so he tries a different strategy.

"And how's Rachel? Britt said she hadn't seen her in a few weeks either."

Quinn realizes that he's in a digging mood today, so one word answers just aren't going to do the trick.

"Rach is fine. We've been hanging out a lot lately so that's probably why we've both been MIA."

"You guys are always hanging out. We still usually see you…."

He's just not going to back down.

"Yeah and?" Quinn sounds positively irritated and that only makes Sam want to know more. For some reason, there's more to this than what Quinn is saying. She's never this quick to anger over something as simple as her whereabouts.

"And I'm your friend. I was just wondering, just wanted to make sure you were okay." He shrugs as if the sentimental words aren't a big deal, but he can tell that Quinn now feels bad that she was so rude when he was just inquiring like any good friend would.

"Yeah, sorry." She runs her fingers through her hair as she glances around the campus coffee shop, unusually empty for a Monday. "I don't mean to be so short with you. It's just been a tough couple of weeks."

Sam now feels awful.

"Oh..well, I'm sorry! I didn't mean to pry or anything."

"No, you're not! I-I just…" He's going to find out eventually. She can't hide a marriage forever. Especially since his girlfriend is surely going to be her fiancée's maid of honor. "I'm getting married. To Rachel."

Sam freezes mid slurp. His eyes dart from left to right. As if he's waiting for a camera crew to pop out of nowhere and fulfill his lifetime dream of being punk'd.

She almost forgets to breathe as she waits for his response. She doesn't know why she's so nervous. It's not like she needs his approval.

"Like…_Berry_?"

She wants to roll her eyes, but Rachel's voice fills her head telling her to be nice. Be patient. So she calmly responds. "Yes, like Rachel Berry."

"Oh…." He exhales loudly. "Uh cool…?"

Quinn doesn't know what to say. She wasn't expecting that response.

But he's not sure of what to say either.

Quinn sounds so strained about it and he's not sure if that means he should sound disinterested to reflect her apparent mood. But he's so curious and so caught off guard that he just has to know, whether she wants to tell him or not.

"How long have you guys even been dating?"

"About a month."

He nods and takes a sip of his frap.

She says nothing. She figures it might be better to wait for him to say something.

Quinn has always been a rather private person, so though she's not opposed to answering questions, she won't disclose any information without being first asked. And after 4 years, he knows this well and proceeds to question her.

"Since when did you guys become gay for each other?"

She can't help but laugh a little at that. _That's _what she was expecting.

"I don't really know." It's obvious that this is confusing to Sam. He squints his eyes and scratches his head.

"How do you not know?"

"I don't know," she shrugs. "One day, I just woke up and realized I was in love with my best friend."

Sam takes a moment to think about that while finishing his frap.

"Wow. Sounds like you guys just fell out of a Rom-Com."

Quinn laughs because he's right. That is the most cliché thing she could've come up with.

But he believes it. And for all intents and purposes, so does she.

The next thing she knows she's being pulled from her chair into his arms for the tightest hug of her life. He squeezes her for several seconds and at one point, Quinn can no longer feel the ground beneath her feet.

He nearly takes out her ear drum as he yells his excitement and congratulations directly into her ear, but she can't bring herself to be upset with him. As he places her back on the ground safely, she can't help the smile that spreads across her face when she sees the pure joy on his.

"You know, I have to say, this is the last thing I expected from you, but I couldn't be happier!"

The internal breath she was holding as she waited for his acceptance releases itself. She feels the weight that her father unknowingly put on her shoulders lifted and she falls back into his arms. He wraps himself around her again and kisses her head.

"I'm so happy that you found each other."

She loves Sam for this very reason. He's a no-questions-asked kind of guy. He takes everything for what it is. To him, love is love. For him, no explanation is necessary.

He wraps his arms around her shoulder as they grab their drinks and bags and prepare to leave to head to their next class.

"Sooooo…when's the big day? Do I get to be the best man? Am I too old to be a ring bearer? Can I be the preacher guy? Oh! Do you need an impersonator as entertainment, I can do Elvis!"

She vomits a little in her mouth.

"Like hell I'm inviting Elvis to my wedding. But, we're getting married on Valentine's Day 2017 which gives us a little more than a year. That's plenty of time to hire decent entertainment. But, of course, if Rachel has it her way, she _will_ be the entertainment."

They both share a laugh.

"Knowing Rach, she'll be the only one allowed to touch the microphone at the reception."

Quinn groans because, yet again, he's right.

"And yes, you can be the best man." Sam thrusts his fist in the air to congratulate himself on the title, but Quinn makes sure to note, "I only chose you because I literally have no other male friends. So don't let it go to your head. Really, if anyone asks, you're the only man."

He pushes her lightly in the shoulder and she pretends that it nearly knocks her over. But she does this so often that Sam is unfazed by her dramatics.

As they continue to walk, a silence envelopes them and Sam feels the need to ask one more question that's been nagging him.

"Why didn't you tell me sooner, Q?"

Quinn now desperately wishes she could turn her coffee into a glass of wine. She needs it for the heaviness of this conversation. She can hear it in his tone and feel it in his demeanor.

He actually sounds a little hurt. Before she can even formulate a lie about how she and Rachel agreed to keep things secret to test the waters, he speaks up again.

And he sounds timid. Which is not a word she has ever used in association with Sam. He is fun and caring and crazy. But never timid or shy or unsure.

"Did you…did you think you couldn't trust me? Like, I wouldn't be cool with it or something?"

Quinn shakes her head adamantly.

"No, of course not Sam! I just…" She searches for a believable excuse. "I had to come to terms with it myself."

_Yes! That's something that lesbians say, right?!_

He still doesn't look altogether convinced. Which, Quinn thinks, is completely fair. She tells him just about everything. Especially when it concerns Rachel. He really is her only friend outside of Rachel.

She looks over at him and he's staring at her intently, so she looks away again. She doesn't want to make eye contact with him as she bares her soul and takes their friendship to a whole new level with her openness.

"We told my parents about the engagement last weekend and it was a fucking disaster. My mom was thrilled, but my dad basically told me to choose between my family or Rachel."

He stops walking and grabs her bag so that she's forced to either forsake her materials or stop altogether.

So she stops.

He looks like he wants to say something, so she waits. But in the end, he must decide that there are no perfect words for this moment, so he just leans down and pulls her in for another hug.

She wants to pull away. She wants to tell him it's no big deal. But it's a huge deal. And it's actually been tearing her apart inside for the past week. So as she wraps her arms around his broad shoulders, she allows silent tears to fall.

This is the first time she's ever used his shoulder as one to cry on.

Usually, that's what Rachel is for. But Quinn doesn't want to worry her. Quinn doesn't want Rachel to think that she's falling apart and she certainly doesn't want Rachel to feel guilty about a decision Quinn would make a thousand more times even if given the opportunity to do things differently.

So, in the middle of the courtyard at NYU, she falls apart in Sam's arms. The only place she feels safe falling apart right now.

* * *

"Soooooooo….."

Rachel pretends not to hear her and continues to stretch.

"Raaachhhhh…."

She just needs to successfully ignore her for a few more minutes until the instructor arrives.

"I got a text from Sam before class."

_Dammit. _

She already knows where this is going. While Quinn was making her lunch, she had discussed with Rachel the possibility of telling their closest (and only) friends, Sam and Brittany.

Rachel found it to be a good idea and they both agreed they would tell them at some point during the day. But upon further consideration, Rachel realized she was in no mood for Brittany's invasive and possibly insensitive questions.

So though she had had several opportunities to divulge the information of her engagement, she had yet to do so.

Rachel realizes, however, that was a mistake.

Because despite not wanting Brittany to know, she should've considered that Brittany's boyfriend was incapable of keeping a secret.

She figures she may as well come clean before Brittany goes fishing for information, which would only make things worse.

"Yes, well, as I'm sure you've heard," She takes a breath and stretches her leg on the barre, "Quinn and I are getting married."

Though she surely must have known, Brittany squeals and claps her hands together in excitement, which draws the attention of other students.

"So it's true!"

Rachel blushes under their gaze.

"Shhhh Britt. Yes, it's true but it's really not that big of a deal."

That makes Brittany gasp.

"What?! Rachel Berry. This is a huge deal!"

She wants to agree. She always pictured her wedding as a huge deal, but she feels somewhat awful about lying and that prevents her from turning this into a _huge_ deal.

"No, Brittany, I assure you it's not."

She switches to stretching out her right leg.

"What?! You're getting married!"

She's already tired of this discussion.

"I am well aware."

"How are you not excited?"

She's losing her patience.

"I am."

"You don't seem excited."

Patience lost. And before she can filter, she's whisper yelling.

"BECAUSE IT'S NOT _REAL, _BRITT."

_Oh my god. Oh my god. I just said that aloud. _

Her breathing picks up and she worries that she's ruined everything, but there is one thing that eases her mind.

_Remember Rachel…it's Brittany. She probably didn't even catch it. And even if she heard me, I could easily lie and she would believe it. I love her to death but she's not that sma—_

"Wait, so…you and Quinn are in a fake relationship and you're just pretending?"

_Oh you have got to be kidding me! The ONE TIME I need her to not understand is the one time it makes perfect sense to her. Fuck me._

Rachel immediately feels guilty about the expletive and apologizes to the universe, before re-focusing on the issue at hand.

"Brittany, look…" She pauses. She knows that really no amount of words can make this sound less crazy.

And it's one thing to lie by omission, but to try to convince Brittany that she's just crazy when actually she's exactly right just feels wrong to Rachel.

She tries again, "It's not a fake relationship per se. It's just…well-constructed."

Brittany scrunches her face in clear confusion and so Rachel tries once more, in simpler terms.

"Quinn and I don't want to be alone forever. So we figured that this way, marrying each other, we could avoid the loneliness and be happy."

Brittany is unconvinced.

"But what if the unicorn fairies just haven't put your perfect guy in front of you yet?"

Rachel stands up straight from her bent position and turns to face Brittany who has already finished her opening stretches. Brittany, usually dense and distant, has just managed to address her greatest worry. She has spent a few nights alone in her own bed wondering the same thing.

What if prince charming is just a little late for the ball?

"Yes Brittany, but I also need someone I can trust, someone who isn't plagued with ulterior motives, whether they realize it or not. Someone who _really_ knows me and still…stays. In my entire life, I've dated a total of three guys and all of them have been interested in the beginning, but that interest eventually…dies out."

Brittany nods.

"Well, that's cool then."

Rachel squints her eyes. Brittany is just full of surprises today. She expected Brittany to be perfectly fine with their relationship but she did expect a little more prying. If the situations were reversed, she would be desperate to know more. But she accepts that sometimes Brittany is just unpredictable.

She looks around wondering where the instructor is, considering taking the initiative and leading the class herself when Brittany speaks up.

"I can understand why you'd marry Quinn though. She looks like she'd be great at lady kisses." Rachel whips her head around towards Brittany, eyes wide.

"Umm, yeah, sure. She's okay, I guess."

Brittany laughs at Rachel as if she's insane.

"You don't just suddenly date girls because of "okay" kisses. You don't _marry_ someone with okay kisses Rach. That's like marrying someone with okay hands."

It's Rachel's turn to be incredibly confused.

"Wait, what do hands have to do with anything?"

"Well, you tell me….is Quinn good with her hands?"

Brittany is smirking in Rachel's direction as she blushes profusely, picking up on her hidden meaning. But before Rachel has a chance to respond, Ms. July enters the room and demands that they break off into groups of five.

As they prepare to find three other group members, Rachel speaks up, eager to clear up the 'hands' thing.

"Quinn and I haven't done _that._"

She stops abruptly. She ended the sentence, yet it feels incomplete, even to her own ears. And it shocks her when she realizes that the missing word is "yet". Had she continued on, she would've added a "yet".

_We haven't had sex yet. _

That thought surprises her because sex with Quinn is never something she's even considered. Neither of them had. Or at least Quinn had never mentioned it aloud.

They've kissed on numerous occasions, sometimes even in the presence of just each other, when it was unnecessary.

_For consistency, _Rachel assures herself.

And, Rachel will admit, sometimes their kisses become a bit heated. Rachel might also admit that Quinn is a wonderful kisser and she enjoys the feeling of Quinn's lips on hers. Her tongue in Rachel's mouth. It's all very sexy_. _And yet, it's never gone any further than kissing. And neither girl had displayed any interest in taking it further.

But Brittany raises an excellent question. Are they both going to stay celibate for the rest of their lives? Are they allowed to fulfill sexual desires with men outside of their little relationship? Or was sex something they would have to negotiate on as well, much like dishes and trash take out?

It seems to Rachel as though they had the basics of a relationship covered, but they hadn't planned for sex. And certainly not what sex could (traditionally) lead to: children.

Rachel's head is now swimming with all the things that she and Quinn seemed to have forgotten about. The simplest, most obvious things.

Kissing is one thing, but can she handle sex with Quinn? The idea is somewhat unappealing. Not because she finds Quinn unattractive. That's not humanly possible. But she has no interest in the female sexual anatomy. Not only is she uninterested, but she wouldn't even know what to do with it.

But, on the other hand, would she feel comfortable being married to Quinn _and _sleeping with other people to satisfy the needs that Quinn couldn't or wouldn't satisfy? More than that, would she be okay with Quinn doing the same?

That thought, the thought of Quinn wearing the wedding ring Rachel would give to her while laying down with someone else, sends a jealous chill through Rachel that she immediately tosses to the back of her mind.

There are bigger issues at hand.

What if Quinn decided she wasn't comfortable with sex at all? Rachel had only had one sexual partner in high school and the experience certainly hadn't been ground breaking…but could Rachel go without sex period? _Forever_?

That thought alone sends her brain into overload. She's stressed. These are all new thoughts to process.

And then there was the issue of children? Completely undisguised. Did Quinn want kids? Had they _ever_ even mentioned it?

She racks her brain trying to remember how Quinn feels about kids.

She recalls one incident in high school in which a girl from a grade younger than them had gotten pregnant. It was the scandal of the school year and she distinctly remembers discussing it with Quinn, who was very sympathetic. But she can't for the life of her remember if Quinn said something about wanting kids or hating kids or loving kids or anything.

Did Rachel herself even want kids? If so, at what age? And how many?

Her breathing picks up as she realizes that they have not thought everything through. They prided themselves on efficiency and forward thinking, yet they really didn't think about things they might want _later_ in life. They had only considered the here and now.

_I have to talk to Quinn as soon as I can. I have to call her. I'll finish this class and then call her. She'll know what to do. No need to freak out Rach. _

She tries to even out her breathing.

_Quinn will know what to do. So just relax, Rach._

_ Relax._

Her final thought before she passes out.

**######**

**Obviously, this got wildly out of hand. And I apologize for the delay! Oddly enough, I had started this chapter with a completely different vision, but when a few readers reviewed and inquired about the issue of kids and sex and internal struggles, I wanted to satisfy that request. So, here is half of it. The next chapter will be the discussion between Quinn and Rachel about these topics. You may also notice I ditched the hashtags within the story, they were still confusing some people. But the point still remains that when you see a line to separate sections, that marks a different time and possibly a different setting as well. I also tried to incorporate some occasional times and dates so you have a reference point as to the time frame of the chapters. Aaaand lastly, I'm sorry if Sam and Brittany feel a bit OOC, they're not easy for me to write, but I figured the girls needed friends. Otherwise this whole idea is just kind of creepy and obsessive. Haha And for anyone who hates them dating, don't worry, there won't be too much detail about Bram! **

**Anyway, I hope you enjoyed and as always, reviews are very much appreciated! They really do motivate me! Until next time! :)**

**Title by Stevie Wonder **


	6. Beg For It

"I'm sorry! I'm sorry! I just-" Quinn is holding her sides, dying with laughter.

Rachel is completely unamused.

"I just-" she tries to even her breathing. "I just cannot believe you FAINTED!"

She bursts out laughing again and Rachel rolls her eyes.

"It was a stressful situation Quinn! You know how I get!"

Yes, Quinn knows exactly how Rachel gets.

She remembers the time in 4th grade when they had to recite a short speech on their chosen state in America. Rachel wrote her speech about New York, her dream city and the birth place of her idol Barbra Streisand. She started out with an opening number "New York, New York" then began to recite her speech. "I love New York. I love New York because I love Barbra Streisand." Danny Salman shouted that no one knew who that was. There was snickering and whispering and it was obvious to Quinn that Rachel was getting nervous. Her breathing quickened, she placed her hand over her chest, and before Quinn could even think of telling Danny and his stupid friends to shut up, Rachel had passed the fuck out.

So yes, Quinn knows how she gets. She laughs out loud remembering one of her favorite grade school memories.

But when Quinn finally comes to her senses and looks over at Rachel, she sees that she's not smiling at all. In fact, she looks angry. Her arms are crossed and there's a scowl painted on her face.

"Oh come on Rach, I was just kidding. I'm sorry you fainted." She leans over towards Rachel's side of the couch and tries to kiss Rachel on the cheek, but she puts up her hand to deflect Quinn's lips and ends up palming Quinn right in the face.

Quinn sighs as if she's irritated, but really she finds this whole situation so damn funny. She chuckles again to herself as she pictures Rachel fainting gracefully mid class.

"Quinn, this is serious! What are we going to do about Brittany? You know that she cannot keep a secret! She'll tell everyone!"

Rachel has a point. Brittany doesn't know how to keep a secret. In fact, Quinn thinks, Brittany doesn't even know what a secret is. She would need Rachel's fingers and toes, as well as her own, to count the number of times that Brittany has told them private information about other people that they neither wanted nor asked for.

But on some level, Quinn trusts that Brittany knows this secret is too big and too personal to share.

"Well, you told her not to tell anyone right? So I'm sure for her best friend she can keep it to herself." Rachel looks over and scoffs.

"Okay! I'm done with you Quinn. You're not being helpful."

Rachel gets off the couch and heads to the bedroom. Quinn is unsure if she should follow. Rachel has a point, she certainly isn't being helpful. Because she doesn't know how to be or what to say. So she yells from the couch,

"Sooooo are we done with this?" She doesn't mean it harshly. She just wants to know if she has permission to go back to her book or if Rachel still has more to say. But Rachel must not hear the playfulness in her tone because in a moment, Rachel comes storming back into the room. But this time, she's wearing only her yoga pants and a sports bra.

This is not new for Quinn. She has seen Rachel in a bikini. She has seen her in nothing but a towel. And as of 6 months ago, she has seen the faintest sight of Rachel's bottom when they went to the spa to get full body massages.

Compared to what Quinn has seen before, Rachel is being modest right now with just her abs showing and her average sized breasts peeking out of her sports bra.

So why her breath catches and her heart skips a beat, she has no idea.

_I just wasn't expecting her to come out here half naked._

But before she can dwell on her paper thin excuse, her brain processes Rachel yelling.

"No Quinn! We're not done! And how incredibly rude of you! I will let you know when I'm done! And I can assure you, I'm far from done!"

Quinn rolls her eyes.

"Okay then Rachel," she doesn't necessarily mean to yell back but it's what happens when she opens her mouth so she goes with it. "What is it you'd like to discuss further? If it's Brittany, you've done everything you can. You've asked her, begged her really, not to tell anyone so I just feel like it's out of your control now. You just have to be more careful. I'm not mad so I don't understand why you're being so intense about this."

Quinn leans back on the couch, absolutely exhausted after a full day of classes and now Rachel's dramatics.

_We're doing take out tonight. There's no way I'm cooking._

"Would you like to know _why _I fainted Quinn?"

Rachel says it in a way that makes it feel like a trap, Quinn thinks. But she proceeds to ask why anyway, somewhat afraid to know the answer.

Rachel runs a hand through her hair and though she doesn't mean to, she nearly shouts, "SEX!"

Quinn, whose eyes had been closed, whips her head up to look at Rachel in surprise.

"What?" She's so confused. Brittany talking about sex is no surprise to anyone. She has sex talks with strangers for goodness sake.

"She asked me if _we,_" Rachel gestures between them, "if WE were having sex!"

Now, _that_ is a surprise to Quinn.

Not because Brittany asked. In fact, it makes sense that anyone would ask such a question. And it wasn't an offensive or repulsive question because typically a couple, especially an engaged one, would be having sex. Mostly likely even amazing, mind blowing sex because without it the proposal probably wouldn't have happened.

She's surprised that she didn't think of this. What she and Rachel would say when someone asked not _if_ they were having sex, but _how_ _was_ the sex. They would surely ask and she would have to say _something_.

But would that something be a lie? If Sam asked her how the wedding night was with Rachel, would she give some deeply fabricated account of a sexual experience she had not even taken part in or…

"Nooow you see my dilemma." Rachel says smugly as she relishes in the realization on Quinn's face.

Quinn runs her hands over her face. "What…what are we going to do Rachel? About sex?" Though Quinn has never been shy about her sexuality, she nearly whispers the last words out of her mouth as if she's scandalized.

Rachel plops down on the coffee table across from her to provide her input. She figures she should start since technically she's had 4 more hours than Quinn to think about all of this.

"Well…I was thinking, I'm not—Well, I…" she exhales deeply. She feels like this topic is about to get into some serious territory and she doesn't want what she is about to say scare Quinn. But she has to be honest, their friendship is built on it. "I never thought I would say this about my best friend, but I like kissing you Quinn. _A lot. _Probably more than I should, to be honest."

She waits for Quinn to laugh or say something sarcastic but it never comes. She can't decide if this is comforting, knowing she isn't being judged, or completely disarming, because now she has no clue what Quinn is thinking.

Quinn only leans forward with her eyes widened, as if she knows exactly what Rachel is talking about. "I like it too! You're much better than anyone I've ever kissed."

Rachel blushes at the compliment and the star in her wants to let Quinn proceed to shower her with more compliments about her kissing technique but Quinn goes in the opposite direction.

"But as much as I love the kissing…sex is…a really big step."

Rachel completely agrees. She had come to a similar conclusion on the way home from school. Sex _was _a really big step and Rachel wasn't sure she was ready to take it. On the one hand, she loved kissing Quinn. Much more than she thought she ever would, but that was just kissing. Girls kissed other girls all the time for the camera or for fun or even just a free meal from a guy. And kissing was something she already knew how to do.

But she had no idea what lesbian sex entailed. And Rachel hated nothing more than going into a situation blind and doing what amateurs referred to as "winging it". She shuddered at the term.

"I completely agree Quinn. And after some serious thought, I just don't think it's something I'm ready for."

Quinn nods understandingly. She's not ready either. The idea of sex with Rachel doesn't sound like the worst thing in the world, especially if the kisses are any indicator of what she's like in bed, but Quinn agrees that's not something she is just prepared to dive into. But now it's Quinn's turn to go out on a metaphorical limb and hope for the best,

"But eventually…I could be open to it."

Rachel is absolutely surprised to hear that. She thought for sure that Quinn would think sex was _way _too much and would say no entirely.

She takes Rachel's silence for disinterest.

"Only if you felt comfortable, of course! Or we could just…keep things the way they are, you know?" Quinn rushes out the whole sentence so quickly that Rachel is forced to replay it in her mind twice more before she catches every word.

She is quiet for a moment. Mulling it over. Is sex with Quinn something she would be open to trying?

She creates a quick pro/con list in her mind.

Cons:

She doesn't know what to do with a woman's body.

Lesbian sex would be much much more than what they had original planned upon.

And lastly, her biggest concern is that attempting to have sex would make things weird between them. Because if she hates it, it might ruin what they already had. And if she enjoys it…well, that would only raise questions about her sexuality that Rachel is ill-prepared to answer.

But on the other hand, she really liked what they had right now and the kissing was an unexpected bonus. What if amazing sex was just another bonus to having such a great friendship?

And as for the sex not being amazing, Rachel simply wouldn't allow that. She never did anything half way, so if she and Quinn did decide to take that next step, she could always read books and research online about the female anatomy and how to pleasure a woman.

_I mean, how hard could it be really_?

It's not as if she had never touched herself before. And in fact, being with Quinn in theory would be easier than being with a guy. They were both women so there was already a home court advantage.

But the best advantage of all was that Quinn was so attractive. Rachel had always thought so and though she had never fantasized about sex with Quinn, she was sure that it was something to talk about in the morning.

So though she was apprehensive, she found herself agreeing with Quinn.

"Yes…sex is something I could be open to as well, I suppose."

Quinn squints her eyes again, skeptical.

"Seriously?"

"Seriously. Because I mean, what's the alternative? No sex? Or sleeping with other people?"

Quinn immediately shakes her head. "No. No, I wouldn't be able to sleep with anyone else if we were married. That would feel like cheating."

Rachel nods, completely agreeing.

"I know, me neither. So that only leaves sex or no sex and…I mean, I was surprised by the kissing so maybe the sex will surprise us too."

That makes Quinn blush, "That's true. Who knows, with my skilled piano fingers,"

Rachel cuts in, "and my tireless passion,"

"We could have the best sex ever." Quinn finishes.

Rachel lifts her hand and Quinn high fives her without delay.

"Awesome. So, an addendum then?"

"Yeah, sure." _Whatever that is, _Rachel thinks.

"Great, I'll add it to the contract then. We will leave the option of sex open to both parties, pending a discussion when both of us feel ready to proceed further."

Rachel scrunches her face in disgust as she gets up and prepares to head back to the bedroom, but Quinn stops her.

"Woah, what was that face for?"

Rachel turns around just as she crosses the threshold of the bedroom door, "You make sex sound so clinical when you word it like that. It's an absolute turn off."

Quinn laughs and gets up to follow her, egging her on.

"Well, good! My words were _meant_ to turn you off, Rachel. I don't want you trying to force yourself on me before I'm ready to have a discussion about it."

Rachel lets out a high pitched laugh.

"HA! Oh _really?_" Rachel rushes back towards Quinn and grabs her shirt to pull her closer.

Quinn stops breathing momentarily as Rachel pulls her in as close as possible until their noses are touching and Quinn is breathing in every breath that Rachel exhales.

Neither girl speaks for a moment, but then Rachel wraps her arms around Quinn's waist and leans into Quinn's neck as if inviting herself in for a hug. Quinn instinctively wraps her arms around Rachel's waist as well, and is reveling in Rachel's warmth until things become a little _too _heated.

Rachel's breath is hot as it hits her neck, but it sends chills down her spine. She shudders as Rachel places the barest kiss to the exposed skin on her neck. And she completely comes undone when Rachel takes her ear in between two perfect lips and sucks gently. Quinn just barely manages to control her moan.

She can't recall if she's told Rachel about how sensitive her ears are or if Rachel just managed to find this secret spot all on her own, but either way, it takes every bit of self-control not to rip Rachel's clothes off right there.

But as soon as she manages to regulate her breathing and calm herself enough to think straight, something happens that Quinn never expects, especially after their conversation about not being ready for sex.

Rachel moves her lips back to Quinn's neck and sucks. _Hard. _

This time, there is no controlling anything. Her hands fly up to Rachel's hair as a breathy moan tumbles out of her mouth.

"Shiiiit. Rach, that feels amazing."

But amazing is an understatement. This feels fucking life-changing.

Quinn wants to say that she's missed this. It's been almost 2 years since she's let a guy go anywhere near her neck, one of her more sensitive spots. But to say that she has missed this is to insinuate that her experience with past boyfriends has ever felt _this _good. Which would be an absolute lie.

Nothing she's ever experienced, not even with her favorite boyfriend in high school whom she gave her virginity to, has felt this good.

Her hands are grabbing Rachel's hair, almost too roughly she thinks, but if Rachel's not complaining, Quinn's not stopping. And she hopes to god Rachel doesn't either.

Rachel's hands are clawing up and down her back and just when Quinn thinks it can't get any better, flesh meets flesh.

The feeling of warm skin on her own has Quinn in such a daze that it takes her a few seconds to realize that the skin she's feeling on her stomach are not just Rachel's hands beneath her shirt, but Rachel's soft stomach brushing lightly against her own. She yearns to feel more and pulls her impossibly closer.

Her fingertips are just barely grazing against Quinn's toned abs and Quinn is ashamed to say that a few more minutes of this and she could easily cum.

It's been forever since she's been with someone like this and what Rachel is doing is proving to be just what her body needs.

Before she has time to consider that this is not only something her body needs, but something it desperately wants, she feels one of Rachel's hands find its way to her hair and the other cups one of her breasts. In perfect synchrony, Rachel squeezes her breast roughly and pulls her hair back forcing Quinn to expose her neck as she places wet kisses along Quinn's neck all the way up to her ear.

Quinn's breathing is raged and it takes all of her strength to just continue standing upright. Her knees her weak, her heart feels like it's going to beat out of her chest, and her panties are just ruined.

Quinn's nails are digging into the bare skin of Rachel's back and every voice in her head is screaming, _fuck the discussion_, and just as she prepares to succumb to whatever Rachel has in mind, Rachel whispers in her ear,

"Trust me Quinn, if we do have sex, I won't have to _force _you into anything."

She squeezes Quinn's breast even more roughly one last time to emphasize her point. Quinn lets out a high-pitched moan that Rachel silences with a kiss directly on her lips. Their lips graze over one another's hungrily. Quinn's tongue darts out to taste Rachel and Rachel has to force herself to pull away from the euphoric feeling of Quinn's mouth on her own. When she finally separates from Quinn's lips, she makes her way back to Quinn's other ear to whisper one last thing. "If we do have sex, you'll be on your knees _begging_ for more."

And then, all at once, Rachel pulls away.

But Quinn is so flushed and so beside herself that by the time she processes what has just taken place, Rachel is long gone. Quinn sees the bathroom door cracked and hears the shower running and for a moment she legitimately considers stripping naked and joining Rachel.

But her sensibilities win her over. Quinn runs her fingers through her tousled hair and works to steady her breathing. As she straightens out her shirt, she vows that Rachel will pay for this.

_Ready or not, I'm going to make you cum Rachel Berry. _

**######**

**Well, there you have it! It was a tough chapter to write, but I hope you liked it. I've never attempted to write anything even remotely smutty so this is new for me. So any constructive criticism is welcome! Up next: the Berry men come to NYC for a visit! Thanks to everyone who followed, favorited, and reviewed, I appreciate you guys! :) **

**Title by Iggy Azalea **


	7. If Ever I Could Love

"I think we need some photos of us around the house. It doesn't really look like I even live at your place, let alone like we're dating. My dads will be here in like two days and they'll want to see cute pictures and hear stories about how each photo came to be. "

Rachel is probably right about her dads but Quinn can't help but laugh.

"First off Rach, you _don't_ live with me, so I think your tooth brush here and textbooks there will be enough. I know it's enough for me." She leans down as she says this and picks up one of Rachel's text books that has been haphazardly tossed on the floor near the bed. "And also, we have a ton of pictures around."

Rachel scoffs as she reads the ingredients on a container of pasta sauce.

"Two is not a ton."

"Well, _sorry_ that I'm not interested in filling every inch of wall space with cheesy pictures of me kissing your cheek while you look up into the distance like you're the happiest girl in the world. But I actually have class. I have two very nice photos of us and that's enough. And hey, that's one more than any of my other high school friends got and now _two_ more than my parents."

Rachel is silent for a moment. She doesn't know what to say to that. It's been over a month since Quinn has spoken to either of her parents. Every time Rachel tries to ask about it, she's shut down almost immediately with a change in topic.

But since Quinn has opened the door, she feels it's safe to walk in and ask a follow up question.

"How are your parents? Have they called?"

When Quinn responds, she sounds positively heartbroken. Which doesn't surprise Rachel, Quinn and her father were quite close…_in their own weird way, _she thinks.

"No, they haven't. Annie called yesterday and she said they're doing okay. I think my mom has been trying to convince my dad to at least pay for the wedding if nothing else but—"

Rachel is immediately upset about that. "We don't need his _money_. That's not what this is even about."

"I know! That's the same thing I said. After what he said about you, I expect an apology, not a fucking check. But whatever. I don't want to talk about him anymore. How's grocery shopping?"

Quinn's tone starts off irritated but towards the end, it turns into something else. Playfulness.

Quinn goes back to sounding happy and carefree, so even though Rachel wants desperately to ask what exactly he said about her, she doesn't.

"It's been great!"

Quinn knows she's probably lying through her teeth, but says nothing.

Rachel grimaces. 'Great' is definitely a bit of a stretch, but when Quinn offered to go with her to show her how she preferred to shop, Rachel had refused, insisting that it couldn't be _that_ difficult. However, she's finding that she may have underestimated how time consuming this could be without a clear strategy. But she will _never _tell Quinn that.

"I'm enjoying this. It's very peaceful. Though…I have to say, it's hard to be a vegan on this budget. Everything healthy is so expensive." She bites her bottom lip between her teeth as she reads the ingredients on another package.

She wouldn't have to do this if she had more money, then she could just buy the name brand products that Quinn usually purchases. But instead, she has to look for generic versions of everything. Which are sure to be even less tasty than the already sometimes bland name brand options.

"Yeah? Okay, well, feel free to get me the generic stuff so you have a little more to spend."

Rachel laughs. Quinn is a sweetheart for offering to eat generic products so that Rachel can continue her vegan lifestyle, but she is sure Quinn has never eaten generic anything in her life. But as she approaches the cereal aisle, she decides to test the seriousness of Quinn's proposal.

"Ookay, I see here on the list we have Special K with red berries, but that is a whopping $4.98 for an 18 ounce box. _However,_ they do have a generic version, Special J."

There is silence and Rachel has to bite her tongue to hold in her laughter. She has already thrown the box of Special K into the cart knowing that Quinn will not be willing to compromise on her favorite cereal. She is already headed to produce when Quinn finally speaks.

"Well…does it still have the red berries?"

"Hmm," Rachel pretends to be reading the cover of the non-existent cereal box. "Well, it does appear to have some sort of fruit in it."

"Some sort?! Like, what _kind _Rachel? Are they red berries at least?!"

Rachel pretends to read once more before hesitantly responding, "I don't really know Quinn…the box is just black and white."

She barely has time to finish her sentence before Quinn is shouting in her ear, "No no! Absolutely not! Just get the Special K. I will crawl back to my father and ask him for money before I eat cereal out of a black and white box like this is Leave It to Beaver or something. That cereal must be leftover from the depression era."

Quinn continues to rant about the nonexistent cereal and Rachel continues to look like a lunatic as she laughs hysterically going up and down the aisles.

She officially loves grocery shopping.

* * *

"Okay, big smiles in 3, 2, 1." The shutter clicks, the camera flashes, and they change position.

Quinn wraps her arm around Rachel's shoulder as Rachel turns into her. Rachel puts her right arm around Quinn's slim frame as she clicks the button to take the photo.

They walk over to the tripod and review the last few photos. There are a few of Quinn and Rachel holding hands in front of a tree. One of Rachel and Quinn hugging awkwardly. And one that Quinn literally fought against for 20 minutes: Quinn and Rachel sitting in front of the same tree with their backs pressed to one another and their arms crossed. The pose was a direct replica of one that had taken in the park as children about ten years ago. Quinn agreed that the concept was cute, but the final product is just weird.

"Yeah, no Rach. This isn't going to work. These look so staged. And cheesy. And…no."

Rachel sighs. She hates to say it, but Quinn has a point. These photos look very professional but _very _fake. But since they were her idea, she can't admit to any of this.

"Well, maybe if someone looked a little more excited…."

Quinn scoffs.

"I'm sorry, but I can't get excited about posing for cheesy photos. Why can't we just-" Quinn cuts herself off as she heads back to her purse by the tree.

"Quinn, you really should take this more seriously. I can barely even see your teeth, I need you to be more-"

"Rach," she digs through her purse until she finds her phone, "I need _you _to relax. These photos are for around the house right? So they should be fun and cute, not posed and staged." Quinn laughs again as she thinks of the photo of them back to back.

"Sooooo," she approaches Rachel and pulls her arm gently, but with enough force so that Rachel is as close to her as she can be. Quinn throws her right arm around Rachel's shoulder and uses her left to extend the phone, change the camera to face forward, and take the photo.

"Big smile Rachel." Rachel has but a second to smile widely before the camera snaps the picture.

Before Rachel has a chance to adjust positions, Quinn snaps another photo.

"Hey! I wasn't ready!" She protests, but Quinn continues to snap photos, changing faces from silly, to serious, to scary each time. Rachel isn't even looking at the camera anymore, but instead up to the sky in laughter.

Quinn, who values artsy photos with the perfect lighting, is rarely this silly, so she decides to just shut up and enjoy the playfulness of the moment.

She hugs her arms around Quinn's waist and rests her head on Quinn's shoulder as she continues to take photos. They snap a few in that position, smiling, making goofy faces before moving on to a new pose with Rachel kissing Quinn's cheek. Quinn does her best to look off into the distance like she's madly in love before Rachel asks for the phone.

Quinn hands it over easily and Rachel, who is accustomed to her iPhone, immediately looks confused as she peers down at the screen.

"Why are there so many photo options?"

"Here," Quinn extends her hand to help her, but she turns her back on Quinn rapidly, insisting that she can handle it.

"See I got it!" She says after a few moments. She holds up the camera to take a photo of Quinn, but instead of taking a picture when she presses the center button, a red light comes on and seconds begin to count up in the right hand corner.

"Wait…how do you take a picture? I pressed the button, but now all I have is a red light."

Quinn laughs, amused by Rachel's technological incompetence. "That's the video, dummy. Here, give it to me, just let me-" She reaches for Rachel but Rachel is quicker and dodges out of the way of her hands.

"No! I'm going to figure this out. Leave me be, Quinn!"

The phone continues to film as Rachel tilts it every which way trying to figure it out. Quinn loves independent Rachel, but she can't stand stubborn Rachel. Especially when Rachel is holding something as precious as her phone.

"Babe, just give it to me. Come on!"

Rachel freezes and turns her head back towards Quinn. Quinn is standing there holding out her hand and her face is laden with irritation. She doesn't even register what she's just said, or if she does, she doesn't show any remorse.

Rachel's face of surprise turns into one of a sly playfulness. "Babe?"

Quinn rolls her eyes and reaches out yet again, so quickly that Rachel has no time to run before Quinn wraps her arm around Rachel's waist. She pulls her in close, which causes Rachel to let out a little shriek. But she puts up no real fight to escape Quinn's clutches.

With Rachel's back pressed tightly against her front, Quinn leans down slightly to speak directly into Rachel's ear.

"Yes, _babe. _I mean, we are hopelessly in love right?"

Rachel shivers at the breath hitting the shell of her ear and finds herself moving closer to Quinn's sultry voice.

"Of course we are, why else would we get married?" Quinn can't help but be amused by that. Rachel wants to laugh as well, but is having enough difficulty breathing as is. Quinn is so close in a position they've never really been in before. And it quickly becomes her new favorite.

"So then, yes." Quinn's whispering brings her back to reality. "Pet names are a must, _sweetheart_." Quinn brings her lips lower to Rachel's neck, just below her ear and Rachel nearly moans out loud before reminding herself they are in a very public park and though it is rather later in the afternoon on a weekday, there are still quite a few people around.

Rachel moves her head slightly to see if anyone is looking. But the momentary lapse in Rachel's attention provides just enough time for Quinn to reach down and rip her phone from Rachel's hand.

"QUINN!" Rachel tries to escape Quinn's grip to retrieve the phone, but Quinn only holds tighter as she lifts the phone back up and notices it's still recording.

"Oh God Rachel, now we're going to have this long ass video." She goes to press the center button again to stop recording but Rachel shouts out a 'NO' before she can manage it.

"No, Quinn, I want them to see how you're treating me." She looks directly into the camera and speaks with absolute seriousness. "My name is Rachel Barbra Berry and I have been taken against my will. This psychopath has captured me and forced me into marriage. If anyone has even a shred of kindness in their heart, please see to it that I am found and rescued from my captor."

Quinn has to bite her lip to keep herself from laughing and decides to indulge a bit in Rachel's dramatics.

She looks directly at the camera with what she hopes is a most sinister facial expression.

"That's right. My name is Q. I have taken your precious little Broadway star Rachel Berry and I intend to harm her in no way, so long as you do _exactly_ as I say."

Though it's not exactly intentional, Quinn is speaking right by Rachel's ear and her voice is lower than usual. Her words are coming out even slower than usual. And Rachel is turned on, which is becoming the usual whenever she's in Quinn's arms like this.

Quinn doesn't seem to notice though. _Hopefully, _Rachel thinks.

"I will return her to you as soon as all of my demands are met. First, I would like another Maserati. That way, I will have one for me and one for my lover, Antonio. Second, I would like all the big pharmaceutical and oil companies to cease any and all lobbying with Congress. And finally, I would like everyone to stop hating on President Obama. He isn't _that _bad."

Rachel gasps loudly, all for show.

"What?! Those demands will never be met! They're virtually impossible!" She half-heartedly tries to struggle out of Quinn's embrace, but she is only met with resistance as Quinn's arm tightens around her waist.

"Well then…" Quinn nuzzles her nose into Rachel's hair as she forgets all about the camera. "It looks like you're all mine them. Forever" She says it with no menace or malice in her voice. Her words are soft and her tone is sweet.

Rachel sighs and leans impossibly further into Quinn, placing one hand over Quinn's around her waist and the other reaches up to rest on Quinn's neck. She turns her head to the left so that she can somewhat see Quinn over her shoulder.

The sun is just starting to set. Quinn's breath is hitting her face gently. She's breathing in Quinn, the scent a warm mixture of apples from Quinn's shampoo and the distinct smell of her skin. Which is so unique to Quinn that she has no way to describe it. She only knows that it has been a constant in her life. Quinn has always smelled the same. And hugging her, being surrounded by Quinn like this, feels like home. It feels so right that she closes her eyes and just stays there for a moment, enjoying the moment.

"I love you." Rachel doesn't know exactly why she says it, but it leaves her lips like the most natural thing in the world.

Quinn just smiles into her hair and lowers her other arm to fully hug Rachel from behind, forgetting all about the video.

"I love you too baby."

Rachel's serene smile only widens. She loves the sound of Quinn calling her baby. She loves feeling like she belongs to Quinn.

After a few more moments, Quinn closes out of the video and reopens the camera, lifting up her arm one more time to snap a photo.

* * *

Rachel will be back any moment. It's been about 35 minutes since she texted that they were leaving JFK, so she has to hurry. She's been simultaneously trying to prepare dinner while hanging the photos she recently had developed. Photo after photo of Quinn and Rachel are now strewn about the apartment, per Rachel's request.

There are photos of them in the hallway, all throughout their years. School photos of Quinn with pigtails and headbands in her hair. Photos of a slightly awkward teenage Rachel with braces and a pimple or two. Photos of them around the house, Quinn cooking or Rachel singing karaoke. And in the living room, just above the fire place, on the mantle, is her favorite photo. A black and white of a picture that they had taken in the park just the day before.

Rachel's back is still pressed to her front and her cheek is pressed against Quinn's chest as she faces away from the camera with her eyes closed. There is a soft smile on her face and even without color, it's obvious that Rachel is positively glowing. Quinn's eyes aren't visible as she is looking down at Rachel, but there is no smile on her face. She looks serious. She looks intense. But still, she manages to look peaceful and happy. And together, they both look completely and utterly in love.

Oddly enough, Quinn is not surprised by how this photo came out. It was such an intense moment.

And not intense in the heated way that it was the other day in their bedroom. But intense in a way that Quinn has yet to put her finger on.

As she stares at the photo, she just remembers snapping the photo and thinking of nothing but Rachel. She remembers closing her eyes and being surrounded by Rachel. She remembers the feelings that accompanied being wrapped around Rachel. Wrapped _up _in Rachel. In her sweet scent, in her unabashed love. And she felt at peace.

So this photo was the product of that feeling.

Quinn runs her fingers over the picture, in its simple 8 by 10 black frame. She knows she should head back to the kitchen. She knows she doesn't have much time before Rachel will return with her fathers in tow, but she cannot tear her eyes.

Though admittedly, it is strange to see her..her _love _for Rachel displayed so openly, she adores this picture.

She has always loved Rachel. She has always been passionate about Rachel. But never has she seen that love and that passion manifest itself in photos.

If she were an outsider, looking in, she would believe that 21 years of friendship naturally progressed into a loving, romantic relationship. She would believe that she and Rachel were soulmates. And at that point, she supposes that she and Rachel have done an excellent job acting the part.

_Act II: Telling the parents, _Quinn thinks, as she hears the front door unlock.

* * *

"Quinn, you have absolutely outdone yourself this time. I tell you, Hiram and I haven't had a meal this good since….oh gosh, when is the last time we were here?! Has it really been so long?"

Laughter fills the room as both men reach out to grab for seconds.

She watches as the men argue over the last piece of garlic bread playfully.

Quinn loves it when Rachel's fathers come to visit. They are loud. They are boisterous. They fill her apartment with so much life. And it's obvious that Rachel is thrilled to see them, she's been smiling like an idiot and hugging them incessantly since they reached the apartment. Quinn can only imagine what sort of greeting they received upon stepping off the plane.

She finishes the last bite of her own meal and leans back, just watching the Berrys interact.

"Your hips do not need another piece of bread Lee." Hiram says boldly as he slaps his husbands hand away from the bread basket. Leroy gasps and throws himself back into his chair as if he's been stunned.

"Daddy! Look what you've done!" Rachel leans over to fan her father and nurse him back to health.

Meanwhile, as the dramatics continue, Hiram looks over at Quinn and rolls his eyes.

"Those two." Quinn says nothing, but nods fondly as she watches Rachel sneak the last piece of bread onto her plate while her dad is fanning himself and taking small sips of water as if he has just suffered greatly at the hands of his husband.

Hiram takes another square of lasagna and looks over at her, silently asking if she wants seconds. She lifts her plate to confirm that she does and he prepares to cut her a slice.

"Quinn, the fellow that gets to marry this lasagna is going to be a very lucky man." Quinn freezes.

This is it. Leroy has just provided her with the natural opening that Rachel told her to wait for. This is supposed to be the moment that Quinn says something about how the lucky man is actually a woman and the woman is actually their daughter. But she is frozen with fear and nothing comes out. She can see Rachel trying to make eye contact with her, prodding her to take this golden opportunity but she can't bring herself to do it.

_What if they think I'm not good enough for Rachel? What if they hate me for taking away their only daughter? Would Rachel try to back out if her fathers didn't approve? _

So many questions are running through her head that she barely has time to process them before one of her father's changes the topic.

"We just _have to _see The Lion King before heading home. I told him that was all I wanted for the holiday, so if it's not under the Menorah…." Leroy cuts his gaze over to Hiram who is chewing his food silently, purposely ignoring him.

Hiram has always been the silent, stoic one. That's why he and Quinn always got along so well, whereas Rachel and Leroy always seemed inseparable.

She thinks about that for a moment. Unlike her own parents, the Berry men have always had a strong, open relationship. She has always envied that about them and decides that she wouldn't mind being the Hiram to Rachel's Leroy. She would like to have what Rachel's dads have.

She smiles as she finishes her second helping and offers to collect the dishes from the table.

As usual, Leroy and Rachel give a half assed attempt at offering their help in cleaning up, but Quinn refuses. Then, as always, Hiram says nothing while grabbing the glasses from the table and following Quinn to the kitchen to start loading the dishwasher.

They have done this so often over the course of her lifetime that they easily fall into a routine. He rinses the dishes off and hands them to her. She thanks him each time and places them in the dishwasher.

They work silently for about 5 minutes before he gets to the lasagna pan and finds it particularly difficult to clean. He scrubs at it fiercely but after a minute or so, she speaks up.

"Oh, I always have to leave that overnight. The lasagna always sticks. I use a no stick pan, but it still does that." She points to the pan that has pasta caked onto its surface.

"You know what you have to do? You have to lightly butter the bottom of the lasagna slices. I used to have this same issue, then I discovered that a little bit of butter keeps it from sticking like this."

She looks at him like he's crazy. She's been having this problem with impossibly sticky pans for years and the solution is butter?!

"Are you kidding me?!" He laughs and nods his head.

"I said the same thing when I realized it." She's beyond irritated about this simple solution but eternally grateful nonetheless.

"Thanks dad. I'll definitely give that a try next time."

"No problem sweetheart."

They work silently again for a few minutes before he opens his mouth to speak. Then closes it again. He's unsure of how to approach this topic, but he just has to know. He decides to start with a simple question, as opposed to just diving right in for the kill.

"So, how's the semester been?"

She sighs. "Roughest one so far. Surprisingly, it's Business 414: Small Business Structure that's been the most stressful. My father runs such a large company and that's all I know. I'm not familiar with anything else, you know?"

He nods and listens intently as they both take a wash cloth and wipe down the counters.

"I hear ya. I took a few business classes myself and I could never quite get it. I grew up with lawyers for parents so business jargon was almost like another language."

Quinn laughs at that. Hiram is absolutely right. Sometimes she reads through her own textbooks and notes and has to do a double take just to make sure they're written in English.

"Yeah, it really can be tough. But small business is like my favorite class right now. I really like the idea of connecting with employees on a more personal level. And though I don't know much about it, I love the challenge." Hiram smiles proudly at that.

No, he didn't raise Quinn. He doesn't share any genetics with her. And yet, he has always felt a connection with her. She has always felt like family and so he can't help but take pride in how she's grown into such a wonderful, well-rounded young woman.

He stops scrubbing the counters to turn towards her. She continues to put the left overs away as he speaks.

"You know, I'm so proud of you Quinn. You're doing so well in school, not just absorbing information but really taking it to heart. It's one of the things Leroy and I love and admire about you. "

What with her own father being so distant lately, Quinn craves to hear these things. She is desperate to hear that _someone_ is proud of her. She is desperate to know that _someone _thinks she's on the right track and headed in the right direction with her life, even if she has no idea what direction that may be. She needs to know that she isn't a complete fuck up.

But she doesn't say any of this, obviously. She can barely hold back her tears, but she manages a quiet "Thank you."

"Of course. And thank you for taking such great care of our baby girl."

She shakes her head emphatically. "Oh you don't have to thank me for that."

"Well, we do actually. Remember, we lived with her for 18 years, we know it's not easy putting up with her antics." Hiram laughs whole heartedly and Quinn can't help but join in.

Yes, Rachel is actually a pain to live with. And they don't even live together.

_Yet. _Quinn reminds herself. She takes a moment to steel herself before preparing to let him in on their relationship, but he actually beats her to it.

"SO, I know you hate it when I ask, but is there anyone special in your life?"

_Dammit. _She had just managed to find a good segue into the conversation about her and Rachel dating.

"Umm, actually, yes." Hiram does his best to look both surprised and only mildly interested.

"Oh? And how's that going?"

"Very well actually. We haven't been dating long, but I have a good feeling about this one."

Quinn wasn't giving much away and he was aching for more. He was dying to know if his instincts were correct.

"What's he like?" Hiram gushes.

_DAMMIT. _He has backed her into a corner where she has no choice but to either tell the truth about Rachel or lie to him. And there's no way she can lie.

"Um, well, _she's _really something." She holds her breath waiting for his response.

He again does his best to seem surprised, but curious about her sudden change in orientation.

"Oh! Switching it up, I see! Keeping an old man on his toes!" She laughs with him as she reaches into the refrigerator to grab the dessert, tiramisu.

"Yeah, something like that!"

Quinn is making this difficult, but he has practiced law for almost 25 years so he finds the proper way to get exactly what he wants from her.

"Is it serious? Has Rachel met her yet?"

_FUCKING DAMMIT. _There is no way out of this. By the deer in headlights look on her face, she knows it.

She looks up from the dessert and sees him smiling patiently at her but with one eyebrow cocked in a way that tells her plainly that he _knows_.

She shakes her head disbelievingly. She hasn't given him enough credit. He's a brilliant man.

"I think we both know that Rachel wouldn't allow another woman to take her place in my life."

Hiram's smile grows wider as he hands Quinn a spoon so that she can dole out the dessert.

"That is true. So is it safe to assume that you came out, Rachel couldn't bear the thought of sharing you with another woman, and had to have you for herself?"

She grins. "Yeah, something like that."

"Well," he places the extra silverware down gently and turns fully towards her, "this makes that photo above the mantle a lot less creepy."

Quinn laughs and nods along with him. She grabs the homemade dairy-free whipped cream to put atop the dessert to keep herself from talking a mile a minute.

She wants to ask if this is okay. She wants—no she _needs _to know that she has their approval because it means just as much to her as her dad's. Maybe even more now that her own father has shown his clear disdain for her and Rachel's relationship. She needs to know that they believe that this is not just a good idea, but a welcomed one. She doesn't want them to tolerate her as daughter-in-law, she wants them to love the idea of her being an actual part of the family.

Hiram must be able to tell she's dying to speak. And he must know exactly what she's thinking because he takes it upon himself to speak first, giving her exactly what he suspects she's waiting for.

"You know Quinn, I couldn't have chosen a better person for Rachel. Or you. You two balance each other out so well. You always have." He smiles over at her shyly. He's not used to being so emotionally open with her. Their relationship certainly goes deeper than surface level conversation, but this is heavy, even for the two of them.

She pauses before she puts the whipped cream on the last piece of tiramisu.

"I'm glad you think so. I…I really do love her." Her voice cracks a little bit as if every ounce of love she feels for Rachel is attempting to pour out of her mouth and it's causing a lump in her throat.

The sincerity of her words are clear to Hiram and he wraps his arm around her shoulders gently as she works.

"You are such a sweet little mentsh, my love. Mazel tov!" He pulls her close and kisses the top of her head hard before letting her go.

"Thanks dad." She smiles up at him and he beams back at her, proud to know that his daughter found such a lovely girl to be with.

When she can no longer handle the intensity of his smile, she looks back down at the tiramisu and nods as dessert is ready to be presented. And then surely devoured by the two pigs waiting in the living room.

She puts the four plates on a serving tray to take to the living room, where the board game The Game of Life is already set up on the coffee table in front of the couch. Hiram follows behind, waving the spoons around and announcing their presence.

"Finally! We were beginning to wander if you had escaped to Narnia in there!" Leroy laughs loudly at his own joke as he moves over on the couch to make room for his husband.

"We decided on a game without you. You took too long." Rachel says to the room as Quinn puts the tray down on the table before joining her on the floor on the other side of the table.

Rachel sees her fathers getting adjusted and setting up game pieces so she takes a moment to lean over towards Quinn.

"You were gone awhile? Did you tell him?" Rachel is biting her lip nervously.

Quinn nods subtly. "I was forced to after he interrogated me about it."

Rachel giggles at that. That doesn't surprise her one bit. Hiram is quick and observant. She suspects that he must have seen the photos and beaten Quinn to the punch.

She leans over to whisper directly into Quinn's ear. "I chose this game intentionally. I wanted to surprise daddy with the news of us dating. Play along okay?" Quinn looks over at her skeptically.

She hates when Rachel tells her to play along. It usually involves elaborate schemes and some serious acting on Quinn's part. But the look on Rachel's face says that this isn't up for discussion. Quinn _will _play along. And since it's not worth the argument, Quinn obliges.

They begin the game with Hiram, Quinn, and Rachel all attending college, while Leroy insists that he wants to be an entertainer and to do so he doesn't need a degree.

"Be sensible Lee! How will you support yourself?"

"I guess I'll just have to find a handsome lawyer to be my sugar daddy!" Leroy leans up to kiss his cheek but Hiram simply rolls his eyes, amused as his husband's blasé attitude towards college.

Quinn laughs openly at their antics. Rachel, however, is in no mood to indulge their play fighting tonight. She is eager to watch her plan unfold.

"Oookay, my turn!" Rachel nearly shouts. She spins the wheel and manages to get 10 which puts her right at graduation and choosing a career. She gets "teacher" which she's incredibly disappointed with, making what Rachel describes as an "unlivable wage" of $50,000. Quinn wants to remind her that they are currently living off of less than $4,000 and managing well, but now is definitely not the time.

After 2 more turns, Quinn manages to get her own career as a "Lawyer" making $90,000. She can hear Rachel's sigh of relief and realizes just what Rachel is up to.

If this were their usual game of Life, she knows that her own salary would mean nothing. In fact, if this were their usual game of life, Rachel would be openly rude about her making so much money. But Quinn now knows exactly what's going to happen without any further explanation.

Ever since they were children, at the stop sign that required each player to get married, Leroy and Hiram would always join up and put their two blue pegs into one car. They would combine their salaries and take two turns per car which always made the game go faster. Not only that, but by the time the game was over, they always had more money, more life tiles, and a much better chance of winning.

Rachel and Quinn had tried to emulate this strategy once, seeing how successful it was, but Leroy had insisted that only couples could play this way. "Hasbro rules, sweetie" he had told her once.

Rachel had pouted and complained for years, especially after researching and finding that Hasbro had no such rules. But now, she was going to take advantage of this rule and use it as a way of coming out to her father.

"Congratulations daddies!" Rachel says excitedly as they combine cars, "Now you're one step closer to having me!"

Hiram and Leroy both chime in at the same time with a monotonous "Happiest day of my life" and "Hopefully this Rachel will be less whiny."

She chooses to ignore them however, too excited to be brought down by their words. She waits until Quinn takes her spin which lands her on another payday, and then she reaches out and prays for a 7 or higher to get her to the marriage stop sign.

She gets her wish, a 9.

She moves her car the 7 spaces to the stop sign where she is obligated to stop and get married. It's at this point that she would usually deliver a short tirade about how ridiculous it is that they are forcing her to get married so soon, before she's really even had a chance to find herself. But today, she just waits patiently as Leroy reaches for the bag of blue and pink pegs.

"Alright, what are we naming this fellow? Maybe Leo DiCaprio? Or, OR who's the other hot one that all the girls drool over? Brian G-Gopsling?"

Quinn laughs as she throws Rachel a life tile. "No dad, it's Ryan Gosling. And you literally mess up his name _every time _we play. I'm starting to think you do this on purpose."

Leroy is about to respond, when Rachel says loudly so that everyone can hear, "Actually daddy, I was going to ask Quinn if she wanted to team up…" Rachel looks over at Quinn smiling widely.

But before Quinn even has a chance to respond, Leroy speaks up, shutting the idea down immediately.

"Rachel, please, not this again. You know the rules! Only couples can team up! Now come on, finish your turn. I'm aging every second and waiting for you to pick a husband is a waste of the seconds I _do_ have left!"

Everyone rolls their eyes at that.

"First of all daddy, it's not even a real rule. So don't even. And second, I understand the rule perfectly. And so I will ask again, Quinn…would you like to team up?" Rachel smiles again over at Quinn as if she didn't set this whole thing up herself. As if this isn't the huge life changing moment where she comes out to her parents.

_Is it still considered coming out if it's not 100% real? _Rachel saves that question as one to ask Quinn later in the evening, when they're alone.

For now, Quinn smiles back easily and nods.

"Of course, Rach. Should we take my car or yours?"

"Mine, purple is the color of royalty after all." Rachel shrugs her shoulders, purposely giving her fathers no eye contact as they absorb the news.

Hiram doesn't even attempt to act surprised as he takes a sip of water while Leroy sits with his jaw on the floor, trying to process this information. Trying to gauge the seriousness of his daughter's proposal to team up.

Quinn doesn't look at them either, taking Rachel's lead. She just nods and removes her pink piece from her yellow car and places it aside Rachel's piece in the purple car.

"Great, now we finally have a fair chance of beating you two cheaters!" Rachel finally looks up at her fathers and sees the look of surprise on Leroy's face. His eyes are watery as if he could burst into tears at any moment and his mouth is opening and closing as he searches for words.

The tears finally fall and cascade down his cheeks but he makes no motion to wipe them away. "My babies…" He is so choked up he can barely be understood.

He has always been the dramatic one and Rachel had picked up her ability to cry at the drop of a hat from him. But now, the whole room is on the verge of tears and it's Quinn, who is tired of crying, who suggests that Rachel spin again to see how much money they owe her for wedding gifts.

Rachel does so eagerly and upon spinning a 6, she extends her hand to collect $6,000 from them. But instead of giving her the money, Leroy reaches for her hand and holds it tightly. He extends his other hand to Quinn and she gives it to him without hesitation. He pushes both of their palms together and kisses each one profusely.

He has done this on only one other occasion: their freshmen year of college, right before heading into the airport to go home, without them. And he murmurs now the same thing he did all those years ago. "My bubbalas, my sweet bubbalas. My heart is so happy for you two."

His tears are wetting their hands, and Rachel is desperately trying to pull her hand away, but Quinn is fine with letting this continue.

She's beaming up at the men that have been like 2nd and 3rd fathers to her and she is grateful for them. For their support, for their unconditional love. For a moment, she wishes yet again that her _own_ father could've responded this way. For a moment, she considers calling him to see if he has changed his mind but she casts the thought aside almost immediately.

_You need to get over it Quinn. He could've called if he wanted to talk. He could've come to New York if he wanted to see you. _

Quinn urges herself to focus not on what she doesn't have, but what she does. Her best friend and fiancée, who she is actually eager and excited to marry and her soon to be fathers-in-law, who couldn't be happier to make her an official member of their family. Yes, she had quite a bit to smile about.

As Leroy lets go of their hands and wipes his cheeks, Hiram finally speaks up. "Well Lee…It looks like you owe me $50 AND a foot massage."

Leroy chokes out a laugh at that and nods, "It seems so! You were right about them all along."

It takes Rachel a minute, but eventually she chimes in, "Wait! You were wagering on us getting together_?!" _

"Nooo, of course not!" Hiram sounds incredulous. "It was more like a bet."

"That's the same thing!" Rachel shouts, appalled at their poor attempt to make this better.

"Actually babe, it's not the same thing. A wager is a term used when the outcome is considered much more unpredictable, whereas a bet is like a wager with more predictability and a better consideration of the probabilities."

"Shut up Quinn! Now is not the time for logic! My fathers were _betting _on us getting together!"

"Well, honestly, I've never been a betting man, but it felt like a sure thing. You two were always so close, so inseparable! We just knew one day you would see what we saw!"

"What _I _saw," Hiram corrects, "Your dad started betting against me when you two finished your freshmen year of college. He thought for sure that if it was going to happen, that would be the year and when it didn't…" He trails off, shrugging his shoulders.

"In my defense, I had a right to be skeptical, it took them 20 years to see it."

Rachel is tired of being excluded from a conversation primarily about her. "SEE WHAT?!"

"How in love you two are! I mean, it was obvious to us—what, in high school, right Hiram? When they had that falling out?" Lee looks at his husband to confirm and he nods his head agreeing.

Quinn's smile fades and her eyes find a speck on the floor and focus heavily on that. This is her least favorite topic in the world. She and Rachel had deemed that period in their life as "The Dark Ages" and vowed not to bring it up, knowing that they had both made some mistakes during their first year of high school.

But Leroy had committed to no such vow and had no problem referencing it now.

"When you girls stopped speaking and seeing each other every damn day, we honestly thought Rachel was going to hang herself or at the very least, cry herself to death."

Rachel knows how sensitive this topic is for Quinn, so she swiftly tries to change the subject, "The important thing is that we worked it all out. No need to rehash the past."

They both nod in agreement and Leroy goes back to the original subject matter.

"Either way, we thought for sure when Quinn came by the house and you guys made up, there would be some sort of acknowledgement of feelings, but no! Nothing! We got nothing!"

Hiram gently places his hand on Leroy's leg in an effort to calm him and it works, as it has for nearly 30 years.

"Well," Quinn decides she should probably take the lead for the next part, "hopefully this will make all the waiting worth it." She reaches over to grab Rachel's hand and looks her in the eyes. It's obvious to her that Rachel is just eating this attention up.

"I asked Rach to marry me."

Rachel pauses for dramatic effect, counting off 2 long seconds in her head before adding,

"And I said yes."

This time, Hiram _is_ actually surprised. They both are.

They sit frozen for a moment processing the information. And it's not until Quinn says, "We're getting married," with excitement and a hint of nervousness that they jump up from their seats screaming with joy to meet the girls on the other side of the table with open arms.

Rachel and Quinn stand and fall into their arms for a large group hug.

Leroy is exclaiming things in Hebrew that Quinn cannot understand. Rachel is telling him that she can't breathe and he's yelling too loudly. And Hiram is whispering into her ear, "Now you're stuck with us, my love. You foolish girl."

They both share a laugh. And as she holds him closer and turns her head towards Rachel, who is also looking her way and rolling her eyes, she realizes that this is all she's ever wanted. To be stuck with her best friend. To be a permanent fixture in Rachel's life.

And again, in a moment when all of this should feel like a sham, when she should feel awful for lying to two men that have done nothing but love and care for her her entire life, she feels nothing but happiness and contentment.

She began this evening with the expectation that all of this would feel fake and inauthentic, like the photos in the park. But Quinn has to admit that she has never felt more like herself.

After her fathers release them, Rachel smiles shyly up at Quinn, a look of pure adoration on her face.

Without words, she wraps her arms around Quinn's neck, connecting her hands around her. Quinn instinctively wraps her arms around Rachel's waist and pulls her in even closer, just enjoying the moment, forgetting entirely about the other men in the room, who are cooing and awing as they stand aside watching.

In Rachel's arms, she closes her eyes and forgets about the rest of the world.

It's in this moment that Quinn has to admit that even though in the beginning she told herself she could act the part of Rachel's love-struck fiancé, she finds that she hasn't had to act much at all.

She admits that this all feels a little _too _real. A little _too _natural.

As usual, she tries to make excuses for herself.

She and Rachel have been friends their entire lives.

She really does love Rachel, but only in the way a friend should love another friend.

This all seems so natural because she's a very good actress.

But when Quinn is being perfectly honest, she knows the transition from friendship to even a faux relationship should not be this easy. And she definitely shouldn't be enjoying this as much as she is.

And that realization scares the shit out of her.

**######**

**Oh my! I was not expecting this chapter to take me so long so I apologize greatly for the delay. Hopefully the extra-long chapter (over 8000 words) made the wait worth it and you enjoyed the big reveal to the Berry men! **

**Just a few translations in case you were curious: mentsh means "an honorable, decent, or authentic person". Bubbalas means "darlings" and Mazel tov is a sort of congratulations. Or at least that's what the internet told me. Haha **

**Anyway! Please review, as I love your comments and critiques! Thank you to all who have followed, favorited, and reviewed thus far! You guys are amazing! Even you lurkers! ;) Until next time! **

**Title by Keith Urban **


	8. Catching Feelings

"Soooooo...are we just not going to discuss this?"

"Discuss what?"

"Discuss the fact that your parents were wagering on us being in love."

"Taking _bets_." Rachel corrects.

"Okay, fine, but it's neither here nor there what word you use. The fact is they did it."

"…so?"

"SO you don't find it the least bit strange that long before we ever tried to convince them we were in love, long before we had even crafted the idea of marrying each other, they had already thought there was something going on between us?! That's not weird at all to you, Rach?"

Rachel has only been playing dumb because it's nearly 2 in the morning.

They had all stayed up nearly half the night playing The Game Of Life. Two whole games, in fact. The first game ended with a triumphant Rachel and Quinn winning with over a million dollars in both cash and life tiles. After what Leroy deemed the "least legitimate game of all time", he demanded a rematch, and Quinn and Rachel had obliged, feeling confident. The second time, they had finished with a car full of kids and somehow had still managed to collect even more money, winning once again. Leroy had thrown a fit and demanded that Hiram grab their bags because they were leaving.

Hiram obediently called them a cab and promised to meet the girls for brunch in the morning, whisking an inflamed Leroy out the door.

Rachel and Quinn had tiredly gotten ready for bed and had barely spoken. Until now.

Quinn seemed incapable of shutting up now that Rachel is finally in bed, more than ready to fall asleep.

She thinks carefully about Quinn's question.

_"__SO you don't find it the least bit strange that long before we ever tried to convince them we were in love, long before we had even crafted the idea of marrying each other, they had already thought there was something going on between us?!"_

Maybe there's more than one reason why Rachel is playing dumb.

Truthfully, she _does_ find it weird. She thinks it's altogether strange that her fathers would see something that didn't exist.

But Rachel is a smart girl. She knows it's unlikely that they would see something that didn't exist between them…unless it did. That was the only conclusion she could think of.

Maybe they had seen romantic love between Quinn and Rachel because there _was_ romantic love between them, even if they didn't realize it. That would certainly explain why this was all so effortless. That would explain why she was a straight girl desiring Quinn's kisses. It would explain why just hugging Quinn was now the best feeling in the world. It would explain why her heart would skip a beat every time Quinn would call her "baby" or "sweetheart" throughout the evening.

Before, they were friends and they had never considered the possibility of anything more. But now? Now, they were embarking on something entirely new.

And that is something Rachel isn't entirely sure she's ready for. Sure, she could kiss Quinn. She could hug Quinn close and call her sweet pet names and pretend to be in love.

But actually being in love was a completely different animal. One that she is not prepared to look in the eye.

So when Quinn calls out to her in the darkness, asking if she is still awake, Rachel doesn't respond.

She is too afraid. Too afraid of what might happen if they talk about the possibility of this being more than just pretend. She is curious to know how Quinn is feeling, but is not prepared to have a discussion about it until she figures out where she stands on the matter.

So she closes her eyes and pretends to fall asleep to the sound of Quinn saying goodnight.

* * *

She grabs the bottle of wine, two glasses, her Mac, and heads back to the bedroom. It's Valentine's Day and they've opted to stay in as usual. Rachel has insisted that they finally get started on wedding planning, as they have exactly one year to go until the big event. And though there are a million other things Quinn would rather do on a Sunday evening, she obliges.

"Oookay, so we have to create our Save-The-Dates tonight and we also need to create a to-do list for everything that needs to be done for the wedding." Rachel hands the bottle to Quinn to uncork while she opens a word document on her laptop.

Quinn hands her a fresh glass of red wine, which she takes a small sip of and places on the night stand on her side of the bed.

"Well, the good news is that we've already chosen a date, that's like 50% of the work." Quinn says after taking a drink from her own glass.

Rachel scoffs. "Yeah, but we've made things _150%_ _harder_ for ourselves by choosing to get married on Valentine's Day. It's the most cliché, sought after wedding date. Did you know that?"

"I…I did not know that." She also really does not care. At all.

They sit silently for a few minutes as Rachel types quietly on her computer and Quinn just watches on.

It's obvious to Rachel that Quinn is just dying to pull her book from the nightstand since they've both been sitting in silence for the last few minutes. She waits to see how long it takes Quinn to get bored.

She's satisfied less than two minutes later, as Quinn slowly reaches towards her night stand, as if Rachel cannot see her when she moves at such microscopic speeds. Just as she sees Quinn grab her book from her peripheral view, she exclaims rather loudly, "Alright, ready to get to work?"

She hears Quinn's barely there sigh and knows she's probably rolling her eyes so hard. Rachel bites her lip to keep from laughing aloud.

Quinn releases the book and closes the drawer. "Yes, absolutely!"

"Great," Rachel chuckles, "first things first, we need to make a list of locations where we would like to get married. We obviously can only choose one, but it's important to have several back up plans. I would suggest five so that we have numerous options should some of them turn out to be outside of our budget."

"What budget?"

"The one I created….didn't you get my email?"

"Why the hell would you _email_ me, Rachel? We practically live together." Quinn rolls her eyes yet again.

It seems like since winter break Rachel had been staying over more and more. And what had been one day a week and every weekend during previous semesters turned into days at a time that Quinn would come home to find Rachel doing yoga in the living room. Or she would receive a text around 4 p.m. asking what was for dinner.

Not to say she minded, Rachel was a big proponent of keeping up their relationship ruse even when they were alone and Quinn had always indulged her.

She used to like when Rachel stayed over, but now it was even better. Now she loved having Rachel over. Rachel turned her place into a home. Now, when they kissed, it meant something (or at least it did to Quinn). Now, when they went to bed, they didn't sink into their own side with their backs to each other. Now, they would face each other and talk for a few minutes before one of them inevitably fell asleep mid conversation. On more than one occasion, they had woken to an array of tangled limbs with Quinn playing the big spoon pressed tightly against Rachel's back. Neither Rachel nor Quinn ever commented on their new positions in the morning.

In fact, as of late, it seemed as though they hadn't spoken about much of anything regarding the authenticity of their relationship since the night her father's had first come to town. Quinn was dying to know what Rachel was thinking, but didn't want to push the subject. Quinn was enjoying this so much that the last thing she wanted was to frighten Rachel and make her so uncomfortable that she began to have second thoughts about their arrangement.

But it wasn't as if Rachel had attempted to bring up the subject either. She was still trying to figure out where she stood in regards to the realness of what she and Quinn were experiencing.

So for now, they pretended as if there had never been a mention of bets or wagers and continued with the plan.

"Quinn, I sent you an email 4 days ago. I enclosed a copy of the proposed budget for the wedding and said if you wanted to make any changes to let me know. You didn't respond or say anything at home…so I took your silence as consent."

Quinn squints her eyes skeptically and mumbles "Things that rapists says…."

"That is _not _at all what I meant Quinn and you know it!"

Quinn ignores Rachel and picks up her phone, searching for the supposed email. She finds it and opens the attachment, desperate to know what sort of budget Rachel has created.

"Rachel Berry, the same girl who maxed out her first credit card in the first three days made a budget? I don't even believe it." Quinn says with a smirk.

"I needed those microphones Quinn!"

"Four mics, Rach?! You needed four mics for your _one _mouth?!"

Rachel throws her back against the headboard and sighs.

"We're not doing this right now, Quinn, there are more pressing issues at hand. I would however like to end this discussion by reminding you _yet again _that I redeemed my credit score within a year…so…"

"Yeah, you're welcome." Quinn scrolls down the spreadsheet until she finds an easy to read pie chart that divvies up the expenses perfectly. Quinn turns her phone left and right to read the chart better.

Her eyes nearly fly out of her head as she reads.

**Dresses/Tuxedo- $6,000**

**Wedding Venue - $4,000**

**Reception Venue- $2,000**

**Cake/Cutlery/Table Adornments - $1,000**

**Caterer - $2,000**

Quinn somehow manages not to faint and continues reading.

**Limousines - $700**

**Invitations - $400**

**Officiant - $500**

**Photographer/Photos - $400**

**Florist - $300**

**Spa Treatment/Make Up/ Hair Styling - $300**

**Guest Favors - $200**

**Entertainment – FREE**

Quinn would be amused by that last one if not for the disbelief coursing through her veins. She does a quick mental count.

"Rachel, where the hell am I supposed to come up with almost $18,000?! What the hell?! This is literally the most unrealistic budget ever!"

Rachel eyes widen in shock. She had expected Quinn to be proud. She had made a budget all on her own, without bugging Quinn about every little detail.

"Well…I know it seems like a lot, but really those are just rough estimates! Oh! And I rounded up on most of it!" She adds as an afterthought.

Quinn is speechless.

"I…I know it's a lot but you said I could…I could still have the wedding of my dreams."

Quinn sighs and runs her hands through her hair. She had said that, hadn't she? She had promised that them getting married would have no effect on Rachel's dream wedding. But that was before her father had practically disowned her. That was before they started living on a tight, authentic college budget.

The only saving grace is that she had recently began an internship program at the prestigious Keegan and Dwyer, an investment firm on Wall Street. They were very familiar with the name Fabray and when they had learned of her interest in working for someone outside of her own family, they had actually sought her out to join their internship program. They didn't even typically offer paid internships, but Quinn had finagled her way into making $14 an hour. Nothing compared to what the janitor was making at a company like that, but she would take it if it meant that she and Rachel would have a few extra dollars to go bowling or see a Broadway show.

But now, it looked like all that money would be heading straight to her savings account to pay for this wedding.

_You promised her Quinn. And you know that it would make her so happy. _

Quinn looks over at Rachel who is biting her lip and playing with the comforter beneath her.

She sighs yet again, already prepared to give in.

"Of course you would have $20,000 dream weddings." Quinn laughs and subtly reaches out for Rachel's hand. She lays her hand in the middle of the bed with her palm facing upward and waits patiently.

"You should see my honeymoon budget." They both share a chuckle and after a few more moments, Quinn's patience is rewarded when Rachel slides her warm hand atop Quinn's and laces their fingers together. It never ceases to amaze her just how well Rachel's small hand fits into her slightly larger one.

"We can restructure the budget, if you want. And by we…."

"You mean me." Quinn smiles and Rachel nods.

"It's okay. We'll keep it for now and –"

"No no! Quinn, you're right. The budget is way too high and completely out of our price range."

"Oh, yes, I am right," Quinn squeezes her hand to silence her. "But I promised you the wedding you've always imagined and that's exactly what you'll have, if I have to bend over backwards to make it happen. Besides, I'm like 90% sure they're going to offer me a junior level position at K&amp;D after graduation and then I'll start making real money. I'll start saving now and we can put down payments on everything, then by the time we have to have final payments in, we should have enough saved up. We'll cut cost if and when we can and figure it out. But this wedding is going to happen exactly as you've pictured it."

Rachel wants to cry. She wants to burst out into an emotional song about how well Quinn treats her, even though she feels as though she offers Quinn nothing in exchange for her kindness.

These are the moments when, in the deepest recesses of her mind, she's not afraid to say that maybe she feels something for this woman beyond friendship. Because when she thinks about how selfless, how sweet Quinn is, she can't help but feel like she dreamt her into existence.

Being with Quinn like this feels as if God had heard her pleas for someone that loved her, doted on her, and put her needs above all else long before she had ever spoken them aloud. Long before she had even been alive to breathe these requests into existence, a generous deity had given her Lucy Quinn Fabray. And though, admittedly, she had expected a man, she was strangely satisfied with Quinn. Everything she needed, Quinn delivered.

She brings Quinn's hand up to her lips and kisses it. Her own version of a 'thank you'.

"And don't worry, as soon as I get a job, I'll start contributing too. It doesn't all have to fall on your shoulders, Quinn. We're in this together."

Quinn lets out a strained sigh. Technically Rachel is right. It doesn't all _have _to fall on Quinn's shoulders. But Quinn _wants _to do this. Rachel has always been the one with impossible demands and somewhat expensive requests and she's always been the one to meet every demand and tend to every request.

Never in her life has she had to consider budgets or payment plans and she can't help but feel bad about this. When she had offered this proposal, she had expected to be the provider. She had expected to take care of Rachel, and Rachel probably expected it too, she thinks.

_Well, at least I know for sure she's not just with me for the money. _

That thought brings warmth to Quinn and ignites a flame within her and she refocuses on the task at hand.

She looks back over at the laptop on Rachel's lap.

"Yeah, alright, well... let's keep working. I do have a few other questions."

Rachel perks up right up. "Great! Let's hash out all concerns!"

Quinn unlocks her phone yet again and zooms in on the part that reads, "Dresses slash tuxedos. What's that all about?"

Rachel pulls Quinn's hand gently so that it's resting closer to her side of the bed as an attempt to quell the fight that she already knows is coming.

"Well, I was thinking, I was looking up same sex weddings and in most situations, both females were wearing dresses. Which obviously surprised me. But..then I found a few of the more uhh—"

Quinn cuts off Rachel's search for the obvious word. "Masculine?"

"Well…without being too presumptuous, yes. I saw that a few of the more _masculine_ females would wear a suit or a tuxedo and I just found it to be such a nice contrast. I mean, of course the tux can still be white. Or really, you can wear a dress too if you want, I know how much you love them. I just think you have such a unique style that you could get a tuxedo personally made just for you and it would look beautiful, you know? That's why the budget was so high in that category. I figured a handcrafted tux could be expensive." Rachel holds her breath, waiting for the inevitable blow up.

But it never comes.

Instead, Quinn stares at Rachel pensively. To anyone who might dare question if Rachel had a sincere bone in her body, this is the proof that she does. This is the proof that, though Rachel Berry can be self-serving and downright hellish at times, she has a big heart. Especially when it comes to Quinn.

Eventually Quinn speaks.

"Would that make you happy, Rachel? Me wearing a tux? I mean, Is that what you envision when you see us getting married?"

Rachel closes her eyes and tries to picture it. The wedding scenery and setting have generally been the same since she was 10, but the person at the end of the aisle has always just been a fuzzy figure. But now, she concentrates hard and pictures Quinn standing at the altar.

In her mind, Quinn stands there waiting patiently with a perfectly pressed and tailored white suit with black lapels and accented pockets.

And aside from looking positively dapper, Quinn looks good enough to eat.

Rachel licks her suddenly dry lips and nods in response to Quinn's question.

"Yeah, it's what I picture. But like I said, you don't-"

"Raaach, it's fine. It's not my usual style, but I'm willing to try it. If it looks ghastly, we'll revisit the issue."

Rachel squeals happily and leans over to kiss the Quinn on the cheek.

"Thank you."

Quinn's cheeks flush and she mutters a 'you're welcome' before pressing forward.

"Also, what venue did you have in mind for $4,000? For that kind of money, we could get married at the Taj Mahal."

"Okay, first, that's not true. Destination weddings are horribly overpriced. Second, hear me out," Rachel resumes typing and Quinn leans over on her side of the bed to get a look at the document. It appears to be some sort of a form.

"I don't like when things start with 'hear me out'. What's this form for?"

"It's a request form. For Central Park."

Quinn's jaw nearly falls to the floor.

"I'm sorry, I must have misheard you. You want to get married on _Valentine's Day _at _Central fucking Park?! _Rachel! First a February 14th wedding, then me in a tux, and now Central Park?! This is becoming a wedding of horrible clichés!"

Rachel sighs loudly to match Quinn's yelling.

"I know! I know! But Quinn, you have no idea how long I've wanted to be married in Central Park! Ever since we moved here, I always said that it would be a lovely place to be married, didn't I? Don't you remember?"

"Yeah, but I didn't think you meant for us!"

"Well, technically, at the time I said it, I didn't mean it for us either! But here we are!" She gestures to the room but Quinn understands the bigger meaning. "Besides, do _you _have any venue suggestions?!"

"Rachel, I don't even care where we get married! All I'm saying is putting in a form is useless! Forget them being booked for 2017, on Valentine's Day, they're probably booked until 2020! There's no sense in even putting our eggs in that basket."

Quinn honestly feels bad for saying it. She doesn't want to ruin Rachel's hope of being married in Central park, but if she's not upfront about their 0% chance of being approved, Rachel will be disappointed when the city denies her request with a big, fat 'NO'.

"Well…I'm going to submit it anyway. Who knows, maybe no one will have taken Belvedere Castle yet and we'll get lucky!"

"You want to get married in the castle?! Do you have any idea how expensive that will be?!"

"Okay Quinn, I am all for the dramatics, but you're giving me a serious run for my money right now and I don't appreciate it, so stop it."

Quinn throws her arms in the air in frustration and let's them fall back onto the bed with a thump, but says nothing more.

Rachel continues to fill out the form and only looks over at Quinn once it's submitted.

"Done. I requested Belvedere Castle as our first choice. It's not the actual castle, but its grounds. Because of the high demand, they gave me the option for a second and third choice so I chose the Conservatory Gardens and Cherry Hill. I hope that's okay."

Originally when she checked the other boxes as her back up venues, she was frustrated and didn't even think of consulting Quinn, but now she feels bad about that decision.

She doesn't mind taking the initiative, and she certainly doesn't mind getting her way, but she doesn't want their wedding planning to feel like a dictatorship.

She tries to offer an olive branch.

"Sooo is there any particular place you would like to get married?"

Quinn is silent for a few minutes and it seems like she's just refusing to answer.

Until she does.

"Honestly, I always pictured myself getting married at Martha's Vineyard. It's-" She swallows the lump in her throat. "It's where my parents got married and I always thought it would be such a beautiful place to get married. I thought it would be cool to start a life with someone the same way my parents did. But now with everything that's happened..."

Rachel nods. Quinn doesn't need to finish for Rachel to understand what she means and she almost shares her sentiments, except her fathers had gotten married in a small courtroom because of their lack of funds at the time. Years later when they finally had the extra money, they had only a small wedding in their backyard.

For a while, Rachel had dreamt of getting married in the backyard of her childhood home as well, but now that was no longer a possibility.

So Central park was the next option. She only hoped that her request would be approved otherwise they would have to look into other outdoor venues.

"Okay, next, I don't think I want a caterer. I would much rather cook the food myself. Honestly, I don't anticipate a huge guest list, we literally only have like 2 friends and your dads coming. Plus, I just don't trust a catering service to not let an egg or a teaspoon of milk slip into something. The last thing I need is you accidentally eating something your body hasn't had in 15 years and then vomiting the entire honeymoon. Because make no mistake, I will not lay a hand on you if you're sick."

Rachel turns her head Quinn's way and wears a large Cheshire grin. "Oh Quinn, we talked about this." She places her hand on Quinn's upper thigh, where the smooth skin is exposed and draws slow, almost painful patterns with her fingers. "You can't resist me."

Quinn scoffs and picks up Rachel's hand that's moving so tantalizingly on her leg that she's finding it hard to concentrate. She throws the hand back to Rachel's side of the bed as if it has offended her.

"Trust me hon, these hands and these lips don't touch anything that is vomiting or shitting uncontrollably. You'll be lucky if I even hold your hair back."

Rachel smiles knowing that she has nothing to be worried about. Quinn once dug through a trash can of vomit to find Rachel's beloved gold star pin at a high school party, but Rachel knows better than to bring that up now, so she simply concedes. "Fine fine. Anyway, the point here is that you want to make the food and I feel no need to object."

Rachel then types that into her word document. Catering is taken care of.

"And hey, didn't you say something about Save-The-Dates? Don't we need to make those?"

Rachel perks up yet again and open a screen in Safari.

"I hope you don't mind, but I went ahead and took care of it. I just had some time in a class and thought…" She never quite finishes the sentence. She just shrugs.

"No, that's fine. What do you have?"

She clicks on a tab and once the website comes up, she logs in and finds the template she's looking for. She expands the image and turns the computer towards Quinn so that she can see the template more clearly.

The base of the card is black and the letters are a shade of white that stands out perfectly against the background. There is a space for a picture to the far right that is left empty. On the left, it reads

_**You Are Invited. **_

_**Quinn Fabray &amp; Rachel Berry Are Engaged To Be Married. **_

_**Save The Date:**_

_**February Fourteenth Two-Thousand Seventeen.**_

The font is slanted and the whole invitation looks positively regal and Quinn loves it instantly.

"This is so pretty. I love it."

Rachel claps her hands together. "Oh great! Because believe it or not, it took me forever."

"No, it's perfect! Thanks for making it." Quinn continues to stare at the invitation. "You know what I just realized?"

"What?"

"We're literally asking people, two couples in fact, to spend a day that's supposed to be devoted to their own relationship to come delight in ours."

Rachel laughs out loud, having never thought of that.

"Well, hopefully, if everything goes according to plan, it will be an early evening wedding. The sunset will create a romantic atmosphere. They'll be offered free dinner and an open bar so that by the time they're leaving, they'll be in a highly amorous mood. And we all know how that story ends. So, if anything, they should be thanking us."

It's Quinn's turn to laugh heartily as she considers Rachel's very valid point.

"You're probably right. We should charge them to even be coming to this event."

Rachel nods wholeheartedly and looks back down at the Save-The-Date and notes,

"All we need now is a photographer to take some engagement photos of us so we can pick one for the save the date."

Quinn nods. "What about Sam? I'm sure he'd love to."

"He'd probably be offended if we _didn't _ask."

"Great, Sam it is. And he should be more than satisfied with-" She checks her phone again, "a $400 budget."

"Um, that $400 was reserved for a…_professional_ photographer Quinn." She whispers 'professional' as if he's going to pop out of the closet in tears at her insinuation that he's not as good as a more notable photographer. "I think he would work for $150."

"He would probably do it for free, Rach. But he's my friend, I'm not going to dupe him like that."

"So you're saying you _don't_ want to save $250?"

There's a moment of silence.

"Alright, I'll see if he's cool with $130." They both share a smile and continue down the list of items.

They take turns sharing their input about the items on the budget and through compromise, they manage to get the numbers down to what Rachel calls a "mere $15,000".

Lastly, they organize the responsibilities from highest to lowest priority and assign themselves 2 tasks a month. Some of their tasks are individual; Quinn is in charge of creating a menu during the month of October and Rachel is responsible for securing their spa treatments, make up, and hair stylings in November in preparation for the wedding day. But most of their tasks require both of their efforts: choosing a cake, picking out cake toppers, creating actual wedding invitations, deciding on a floral pattern, registering at stores in the city, and finding _legitimate _entertainment.

The checklist appears to be a bit daunting and they debate hiring a wedding planner for about 10 solid minutes, but they look up and realize that they've been planning for just over two hours. It's just approaching 8 p.m.

"I just feel like we're much more efficient than the average couple. I can't imagine how long people sit around and argue about the silliest things."

Rachel nods in agreement. "Well, in their defense, our relationship is somewhat built on efficiency so it makes sense that we would do everything better. And then add to that the fact that we are a well-above average couple." Rachel says with no attempt at humility.

"See and that's why I am anti-wedding planner. We're going to be fine Rach. We've practically mapped out the next twelve months and we've created the ultimate wedding checklist. I think we've covered all of our bases."

Rachel saves the word document in a folder labeled "Wedding Plans" and shuts her computer for the evening.

"Yeah, maybe you're right. But I would still like to reserve the right to appeal the Anti-Wedding Planner Act." She holds up a finger at Quinn to display her seriousness.

Quinn laughs and lowers Rachel's baby sized hand, which is in no way intimidating.

"Okay, your request to have the right to appeal is granted. Anything else?"

"Nope, that's all a girl can really ask for."

Quinn laughs haughtily. "I'll remind you of that when you start asking for horse drawn carriages and jet packs to 'make an entrance'."

Quinn looks over at the clock. It's 8:02.

"Oooh! If we hurry, we can probably catch Once Upon A Time before the plot starts to thicken. And by that, I mean before the heroes take two steps forward and then twelve steps back."

Rachel places her laptop back on her nightstand and lifts her body to pull back the sheets to her side of the bed.

"Okay, sounds gooooood."

Quinn puts her phone on the nightstand and exchanges it for the last bit of wine in her glass.

She picks up on Rachel's slight hesitance and sighs. She is not in the mood for karaoke or a musical sing along, but she asks anyway. "Unlesssss there's something else you have in mind?"

Rachel is quiet for a moment then shrugs.

"Oh, no…well, I mean, I was going to suggest…maybe..I mean, you can always say no, but I thought we could-"

"Oh my God, Rach, what the hell are you getting at? What do you want?!"

"Do you wanna make out?!" Rachel spits out without thinking. The words fall out of her mouth like a reflex after Quinn's question about what she wants. It's what she's been wanting all night. What she's been craving really.

Quinn looks at her like she's lost her mind, shocked by the abrupt outburst. She's about to take it all back when Quinn lifts her own body to get under the covers as well. She finds a comfortable position facing Rachel before responding.

"You don't really have to ask me, you know." Quinn says softly. "I like it just as much as you do so…you can just do it."

Rachel's heart beat picks up to match Quinn's.

The mood has shifted so quickly and just like that day in the room when Rachel boldly attacked Quinn's body, Rachel's only thoughts consist of running her hands over Quinn's taut abs. Running her tongue up and down Quinn's neck. Kissing her anywhere and everywhere Quinn will allow her access. But she keeps those desires inside for now.

Quinn lifts the covers yet again and urges Rachel closer. "My lips can't reach yours." She purses her lips in a pout to prove her point.

Rachel smiles shyly and scoots her body closer to Quinn's so that eventually their chests are pressed against one another.

Quinn's hand instinctively finds its way to her hip and plays with the hem of her shirt, occasionally grazing her bare skin.

She breathes a sigh of pleasure and a hint of pain as Quinn's touch is so welcome and yet it is not quite enough.

She reaches her own hand out to cup Quinn's cheek, running her thumb gently over Quinn's eyebrows, then down her cheek bones, and lastly landing on her soft and supple lips.

"You're a very pretty girl Quinn." Rachel leans in and kisses Quinn's cheek. Quinn finds her eyes involuntarily closing in response to her barely there kiss. "You're the prettiest girl I've ever met."

Rachel pushes forward again, this time connecting her lips to Quinn's.

Their kiss is slow and passionate and when Quinn grips her hips tighter to pull her closer, she can't help but feel like she finally knows what it means to get lost in someone. Because she can't tell where Quinn's body stops and her own starts. They are so close that it feels like they are one.

"You're so sweet. I love you." Quinn says breathlessly. And Rachel doesn't hesitate to respond.

"I love you too. So much." Her fingers find themselves in Quinn's hair, urging her closer, if at all possible. Quinn's lips are finding the most sensitive parts of her neck and she is barely able to get her words out. "You are so intoxicating." Rachel whispers into the night. "I love your lips. And your hands on me. And your body pressed against mine. It's like we were made to fit."

Her voice is raspy and ragged but she means every word. Probably more than she's ever meant anything in her entire life.

But if anyone asks, she's definitely not gay.

**######**

**Alright, there you have it! Since I had originally written it at 4am, I went back and edited it for minor mistakes and even added a few sentences. I hope you enjoyed it! From here on, we'll start seeing more frequent time jumps, so our next chapter should be them around the time of graduation. Hopefully, this chapter gets everyone in the mood for a Faberry wedding. **

**Though I haven't had a chance to respond yet, as always, your reviews and favorites and follows are SO SO SO APPRECIATED! I have a special place in my heart for you guys. If you have comments, critiques or just anything in particular you'd like to see, let me know! And if for some reason you didn't like the chapter, I would love a reason. I write for you guys so I want to write something you enjoy reading. **

**Until next time! :) **

**Title by Justin Bieber **


	9. Avalanche

"Rach?" She hears silence as she shuts the door behind her. She puts the few bags of groceries on the floor by the kitchen and slips out of her shoes.

She sighs in relief as she takes off the heels. She's been dying to do that since she put them on 12 hours ago.

"Baby?" She calls again.

_It's nearly 7 o'clock. Where the hell could she be?_

Ever since they had moved in together a month in a half ago, Rachel has almost always beaten her home.

Quinn walks past the living room, noting that Rachel's keys are nowhere to be found. So maybe she really isn't home. She reaches into her purse to take out her phone and text her of her location when the sight of a body draped haphazardly across the bed catches her eye.

Rachel is sprawled out diagonally across the bed. Her shoes are still on and so is her work uniform. Her mouth is slightly open, allowing a small stream of drool to come pouring out like molasses, and her keys are still loosely clutched in her hand.

"Oh, sweetie." Quinn coos gently. She approaches the bed silently and unties Rachel's shoes to take them off.

This has been happening more and more lately: Quinn coming home at a reasonable hour in the evening to find Rachel already fast asleep.

Though she swears she's fine, it seems to Quinn that auditioning almost every morning then racing to the Broadway Bistro down the street for a six hour shift is really starting to take its toll on Rachel.

Quinn had originally insisted that Rachel not work, that her salary alone could take care of everything.

As expected, she was offered the position at Keegan &amp; Dwyer, but the starting salary was less than what she had hoped for. And after agreeing that they would stay in Quinn's apartment and just continue to pay rent because it was way too hot in June to move, that meant that they would need two salaries if they were going to be able to pay rent, bills, save money, put money aside for a wedding, and still have money left over.

Rachel's job at the diner is just over 30 hours a week and still only pays minimum wage, so it is mostly used for paying bills and buying groceries. Though Rachel had willingly and readily offered to get a job, she is really starting to worry that Rachel's need to work is distracting her from putting her full focus on auditioning.

Quinn has been brainstorming for the past week or so about what she can do to help Rachel. So far, she has come up with nothing. Rachel's fathers have offered to help them out financially, but Quinn is far too proud to except their money. Not only had her father raised her to never take handouts from anyone, but she had also made a promise to herself that she was going to prove her father wrong by finding her own success without him. She could hardly say she had made it of her own accord if she just used her future father-in-laws as a crutch.

No, she wouldn't accept anything from anyone.

But that also meant that she needed a different plan than the one they were currently executing because there was no way she could continue to watch Rachel struggle through her day like this.

Though she has yet to say as much, Quinn is convinced that the reason Rachel hasn't landed any roles is because she hasn't had the time on her hands to find the really good auditions. Open auditions for high profile shows are incredibly rare and, more often than not, require an agent with more connections.

Rachel didn't have an agent though. Because that would cost money. Extra money that they did not possess.

After removing Rachel's socks and shoes, she heads to the bathroom and reaches under the sink for the oil and lotion she's looking for. Quinn sits down gently on the bed and rubs some of the oil in her hand before reaching out for one of Rachel's feet.

Rachel wakes up with a moan and lifts her head to find Quinn at the end of the bed massaging her feet.

"Baby…hi!" She is excited to see Quinn for the first time all day, but still her voice is covered in sleep.

"Hey, Rach." Quinn's voice is soft and full of adoration, she loves coming home to Rachel. "How was your day?"

"So looooong." She draws out the word to illustrate her point. "And the worst part is that I had to go all day without seeing you. You left so early," she whines.

"I know, I'm sorry love. I had a 7am meeting. I was going to remind you last night but you were already asleep by the time I had gotten home."

"7am?! Was the sun even up?"

Quinn laughs at the sound of Rachel's childlike surprise.

"Yes, but just barely."

"That's not fair Quinn, they have you there so early and sometimes they keep you so late."

Quinn loves the worry etched within Rachel's voice. She loves knowing that she cares.

"Don't worry about me. I'm fine. It's you that I'm worried about."

Quinn kneads a particularly sensitive spot and Rachel moans loudly and involuntarily.

"Ahhhhhh, that feels so good." That sound does something to Quinn.

She longs to hear those words in a different context. She yearns to hear them spoken in her ear as she runs her fingers down Rachel's stomach, towards her—

"But seriously Quinn, don't worry about me. I'm doing okay, going to auditions and bringing home the figurative bacon. I'm fine."

"No, you're not _fine_. You're so tired by the time you get off work that you have no time to look for auditions or look over scripts. So then you end up waking up at the crack of dawn sometimes and it's just not healthy. And the auditions you do go to are almost always these poorly backed off-Broadway shows. Which isn't a problem, but you're way too good for those shows."

"And yet none of them have called me back." Rachel cuts in, discouraged.

"Hey! But that's not your fault. What you need is someone to point you in the right direction."

"What does that mean?" Rachel pulls her foot from Quinn's grasp, but Quinn just reaches for the other foot and begins massaging it, applying more oil to her hands.

"I was looking up stuff at work and I read that without an agent, it's almost impossible to find out about the _good _auditions. And then, then good auditions for the actual Broadway stuff like you to submit headshots and a lot of those people have stylists and make-up artists to get them ready for the part so that they can go _already in character. _Can you believe that?"

Rachel laughs at Quinn's sudden enthusiasm.

"Yes Quinn, I know what the standard is for a Broadway audition."

"Then why didn't you tell me, Rach?"

"Because," she takes a breath and pulls her foot away again from Quinn. "Because what difference would it make Quinn? Those are all things we can't afford right now. Especially with this wedding. And honestly, if I had to choose right now between being on Broadway and planning our wedding, I would rather focus our efforts and finances on the wedding. The stage will still be there after the wedding, but we only get one wedding day and I want it to be special."

Quinn scoots up towards the top of the bed where Rachel's head is laying and leans back on the bed, closing her eyes. Rachel immediately curls up next to her on her side and wraps her arm securely around Quinn's waist, closing her own eyes as well.

"I want you to tell me if this starts to get to be too much, okay? And I'll figure something out."

Rachel giggles like a schoolgirl with her first crush and leans up to kiss Quinn on the cheek.

"You're so sweet, you know that? Always wanting to fix everything for me. But seriously Quinn, the stage will still be there after the wedding. And if there's one thing we can both absolutely sure of, I'm going to be on it."

Quinn's eyes fly open. She sits up and turns her head to the side quickly, staring at Rachel.

"What is it? What's wrong?" Quinn looks like she's suddenly seen a ghost.

She wiggles away from Rachel's arms and plants her feet firmly back on the ground.

"Nothing…nothing, I just-" She just what? Was suddenly hit with a stroke of genius that would require actions that Rachel would never knowingly approve of? "Come on, I'll make you dinner and then I have an errand to run."

Rachel looks up at the clock on the wall. "Where could you possibly have to go? It's like 7:30..."

"I know, but it'll be quick." She leans down and kisses her. She means to pull back immediately, but Rachel wraps her arms around her neck and pulls her back down on the bed. Quinn falls in a heap on top of Rachel and they both fall into a fit of laughter.

"Ugh, why do you have to go? We could do this all night, you know?"

"Do what exactly?" Quinn laughs as she rights herself yet again, rubbing the wrinkles out of her dress. "Roll around the bed making out?"

"No! Let's stay in. Order Thai. We can put in Funny Lady and eat green tea ice cream for dessert. We can stay in and stay up all night."

Rachel is getting more and more excited as her plan unravels. It's been so long since either of them have had the time or energy to stay up past 9 doing anything.

"It's a Thursday night Rachel. We have to be up early tomorrow. Plus, you hate Funny Lady," Quinn says as she unzips her dress and heads to the closet to hang it up. Rachel doesn't bother being subtle about her staring, Quinn isn't looking in her direction anyway.

"I don't _hate _it, I just think that it lacks the excitement and genuine ingenuity of its predecessor, Funny Girl."

"We can watch it tomorrow night Rach. It's late."

"Yet you're planning on going out? Come on Quinn." She crouches on the bed on all fours as she whines. "I swear I haven't spent more than 5 hours with you this whole week."

"Well, that's not exactly my fault Rach, I have to work." She's getting defensive. She doesn't mean to, but she hates that Rachel is making her feel bad about their lack of quality time together. But despite how she may feel, based on the silence, she can tell that she's been too harsh. Her words, her tone, all of it is too firm for Rachel, who just wants to spend some time with her.

Quinn turns back towards Rachel and says sweetly.

"It's not as if I would rather be at work than at home with you, okay?"

"Okay, well prove it then. Stay home with me. You still haven't even told me what's so important that it has to happen _tonight_?"

Quinn doesn't feel like explaining her plan to Rachel, so she throws an old cheerleading shirt over her head and approaches her in just her t-shirt and underwear.

"Stay with me?" Rachel whispers softly as she places her hands on Quinn's upper thighs.

Quinn is staring so intensely into her eyes and Rachel is meeting her gaze just as fearlessly.

"Always."

Rachel smiles widely and Quinn returns it as she leans forward with lips pursed, clearly expecting a kiss.

Rachel obliges and pushes herself up to kiss Quinn's lips.

Quinn pulls back just slightly to speak.

"It's annoying how much I love you." But Rachel just laughs against Quinn's lips and kisses her again, allowing her tongue to sneak out and find Quinn's. They kiss as if they've been deprived for days, with Rachel's fingernails digging into the skin on Quinn's thigh and Quinn leaning down with her hands laced within Rachel's hair, pulling just so.

Quinn pulls back, in desperate need of air, which forces Rachel to take a break to breathe as well.

"It's disgusting how lucky I feel to be loved by you." Rachel says as she fixes her hair, without much luck.

Quinn looks down at Rachel to see her cheeks flushed and lips full and staring up at her looking positively in love.

Over the last few months, but especially since moving in together, Quinn has wanted to have a discussion about the state of their relationship. Sometimes, it all just feels so real. Sometimes, it all just feels so natural. Or at least for her it does. For her, it is definitely feeling like less of friendly relationship and more like a romantic relationship. And she is dying to know if Rachel is feeling it too. But then, in these little moments, it seems impossible that Rachel _wouldn't_ be feeling it too.

_When she says she loves me, it feels so real. She smiles at me like I'm the prettiest thing she's ever seen. She has to be feeling what I'm feeling, _Quinn thinks.

And so she doesn't ask.

She tells herself it's because she doesn't want to ruin the good mood. That now just isn't the right time.

But really, she doesn't want to know.

If Rachel _isn't_ falling for her and as it turns out Quinn is just free falling in love all on her own, then she would rather not to know.

* * *

The following evening, Quinn arrives home much later than usual and expects to find Rachel in a similar position as the night before. So instead of yelling for her as usual, she shuts the door silently. However, she is surprised to find Rachel sitting at the dining room table with her head in her hands and her phone face up in front of her.

"Hey, Rach. You okay?"

Rachel immediately looks up at the sound. She quickly notes that Quinn is still dressed in her work clothes from that morning and she looks positively exhausted but the most important thing is that she's alive and well.

Quinn notices that Rachel's eyes are puffy and red as if she's been crying. She drops her bag immediately and rushes to the table.

"Hey, what's wrong babe?"

She crouches down and balances herself by placing her hand on Rachel's knee.

Rachel tentatively looks up at Quinn, almost ashamed.

"I called you. I called you at work at 4 to ask what was for dinner. Your assistant said you had left work almost an hour ago. I said to myself, 'That's weird. Quinn didn't say anything about leaving early, but whatever.' Then I called you on your cell and you didn't answer. I texted and you didn't answer, but that didn't really worry me, I guess. Until 8 rolled around and you hadn't called. You hadn't texted. And you said you'd be home by 7. Do you even know how-" Rachel has to stop herself, feeling her eyes on the brink of tears. She takes a few steadying breathes and she presses forward. "Do you have any idea how worried I was? How I kept thinking 'This is so unlike Quinn' and then my mind just kept replaying the million and one scenarios of what could've stopped you from calling. All the things that could've happened that would've kept you from being home when you said you would be." At this point, Rachel can't keep her voice from cracking with emotion.

Quinn is speechless. Never once has Rachel cared about her whereabouts like this.

Of course, she thinks, they have also never _lived_ together. Their friendship had always left one wandering where the other was but Quinn knew Rachel had a life of her own and vice versa. So she had never hounded Rachel about where she was or when she would be coming over. Truthfully, most times, she didn't really care where Rachel was when she wasn't with her.

Quinn didn't know what it meant to be so dependent on Rachel that she called and texted several times when she got no reply. In her mind, no reply meant Rachel was probably busy and would get back to her when she could.

But now?

Now they are an engaged couple living together; she can't call or text back whenever it becomes convenient for her. She has someone at home _waiting _for her. Someone who expects her to be there at a particular time and when she isn't, it's a problem.

And now, the excuse for not calling seems so ridiculously shitty that Quinn almost doesn't want to say it, but she knows Rachel deserves to know.

"My...my phone died." Quinn lifts her phone pathetically as if to prove that it had in fact died.

Rachel, who is expecting a much better excuse, finds the situation a little funny. She had worried for hours, driven herself mad thinking of all of the horrible things that could've happened to Quinn in the city and all along, her phone had just died.

"Where was your charger, Quinn?"

"I forgot it at work." Quinn says sheepishly.

"Why did you leave work early?"

"I had an errand to run. I told you I-"

"But I thought you said you were running your errand when you got off."

"Well, yeah, but then I was afraid it would take longer than expected so I left at 4 and totally-"

"Forgot to tell me?" Rachel almost sounds a little hurt. And it makes Quinn feel bad because truthfully she didn't forget. She was going to say she totally didn't think to tell Rachel, but in an effort to better the situation, not make it worse, Quinn goes with Rachel's answer.

"You didn't think about me at all," she says sadly. She sniffles slightly and stands from her chair abruptly, preparing to storm off. But she barely gets away from the table before Quinn reaches out to grab her arm and stops her.

"Rachel, wait." Rachel squirms a bit, still committed to her dramatic exit, but Quinn refuses to let her go.

"Baby, look at me." Rachel refuses so Quinn is forced to put her free hand on Rachel's cheek to turn her face gently so that they can finally make eye contact.

Rachel eyes are filled with utter sadness.

_All of this because I didn't call?_

"Hey, I'm so sorry. I am so sorry that I didn't call or text when I had the chance. But it just didn't seem like that big of a deal. I mean, you've never cared before…." She trails off hoping Rachel will provide some sort of explanation for this craziness.

"I know…I just," she looks down at Quinn's blazer for a distraction. She finds one as her hands begin to fiddle with the buttons.

"You know, before all of this, I would invite myself over after class and find things to do and order food for myself. And you got home whenever you got here. But…now it's like…it's like you're my _whole life_ Quinn." Rachel looks up at that, needing to know that Quinn isn't just hearing her, but fully understanding as well. Quinn is staring down looking her in the eyes, listening patiently. "My whole future feels like it's built around you, around _us_. Tonight it occurred to me for the first time that if something ever happens to you, if you don't ever come home…I'm not just losing my best friend, I'm losing everything." Rachel places her forehead on Quinn's chest breathing in her calming scent.

Quinn wraps her arms securely around Rachel's shoulders but says nothing. Because Quinn understands. She does. She's been feeling it too, in her own way. She worries more than ever now about Rachel. About her health, about her well-being, and especially about her happiness.

"I understand, Rachel. I'm so sorry. It won't happen again. Okay?"

Rachel sniffles and nods against Quinn.

"I'm sorry for being so crazy emotional." Quinn shakes her head, not wanting Rachel to feel bad. She probably would've gone out looking for her with a squad of trained dogs if the situations were reversed.

"Don't worry about it. Because I know exactly what you mean. The whole dynamic has changed now and I need to be more considerate of that."

She hugs Rachel tighter and kisses her head gently, debating if now is the time to tell Rachel what she's been up to all evening.

She decides that Rachel could definitely use some uplifting news right about now.

"Hey, I have a surprise for you. Kind of."

Rachel pulls away slightly, her face already starting to morph into a smile. "For me?"

Quinn cups both of Rachel's cheeks and strokes them gently with her thumbs. She kisses Rachel soundly on the lips before responding.

"Yes, for you. Stay here." Rachel looks positively excited now. She loves surprises. And gifts in general.

Quinn heads back towards the door where she left her messenger bag.

"What is it?! Dear God please let it be a new elliptical!" Unfortunately, Rachel's elliptical had suffered a horrible death when Quinn and Sam had tried to carry it up four flights of stairs when Rachel moved in, just before graduation in May.

Apparently, what Quinn had heard as "This isn't that much weight" turned out to be "I need to take a break" which lead to Sam dropping the elliptical and nearly crushing Quinn in the process. When Quinn was met with the option to jump out of the way of the falling piece of workout equipment and save herself or stay in front of it to slow its decent, Quinn had obviously chosen the preservation of her own life. Much to Rachel's chagrin.

Which means for about 2 months, Rachel has been unable to continue her usual workout routine. So for 2 months, Rachel has been intruding on Quinn's monthly morning runs, which is starting to get the better of the both of them.

So Quinn thinks that maybe her next big investment should be an elliptical for Rachel.

"Not quite. But hopefully better. Sit at the table and close your eyes." She digs around for a moment before finding the small rectangular piece of paper tucked in between the pages of her notebook. She takes it out and walks back to the table. She carefully lays it down in front of Rachel, upside down.

"Okay, you can open your eyes now." Quinn says taking a seat perpendicular to her.

Rachel opens her eyes and they are immediately drawn to the paper in front of her.

"What's this?" But even as she asks, she's eagerly flipping it over and her heart almost stops beating.

In her hands is a check for $102,000.

"Quinn, where the hell did you get this kind of money?" she asks nearly breathless.

Quinn shrugs, trying to make what she says next seem much less significant than it really is.

"I sold my car."

Rachel's eyes widen. "Quinn! Why in the world would you do that?! You _love _your car!"

Quinn really does. Or…did. Her black Maserati was a gift from her parents when she graduated high school and she cherished it more than anything. The only other person even allowed to drive it was Rachel and even that had taken some time and extensive practice.

"I know…I love my car. But… I guess I love you more."

Quinn laughs nervously, looking incredibly anxious and Rachel is even more confused now.

"What does this have to do with me?"

Quinn is silent for a few seconds, trying to figure out where to start. How to explain how this crazy idea came to be. She figures starting from the beginning is always a good place.

"My father used to take me to work with him sometimes, as you know." Rachel nods, remembering 8 year old Quinn being dragged to work with her father every other weekend. If it had been her, she would've kicked and screamed the whole way, but Quinn was always excited about it. Rachel had never understood the excitement and anytime she was invited, she politely declined, like her fathers had taught her. But she has no idea what this has to do with Quinn outright selling her car.

"And the one thing he used to tell me time and time again was 'Quinn, the best thing you can do as a leader is make good investments.' And for a while, I thought he meant like stock and market investments. But one day he was holding a company barbecue during work hours and I asked him, 'Shouldn't they be working? Aren't you paying them to work?' And do you know what he said to me?"

Whether she expects a response or not, Rachel shakes her head 'no' anyway.

"He said, 'If you treat people like they matter, you won't have to pay them at all. They'll work for free. With a smile.'" Quinn looks absolutely nostalgic as she speaks, remembering her father during better times. Rachel just wants to reach out and hold her.

So she does. She holds both of Quinn's hands firmly between her own, which appears to give Quinn the strength to carry on.

"My dad taught me that investing in people is the best, most forward-thinking thing you can do. And that's what I want to do."

Quinn's explanation has explained literally nothing to her.

"But...I thought you told me once that that's the one thing you _don't _bet on: people. Because they're never a sure thing."

"But that's the thing Rachel, you _are _a sure thing! You said so last night. You said, 'I'm going to be on Broadway and that's one thing we can be sure of!' And you are absolutely right! One way or another, you'll make it! But like I said, some people have agents, and stylists and make-up artists and all sorts of extra stuff that you don't have. _Yet._" She taps on the check furiously as she speaks. "That's what this money is. It's an investment in your future, Rachel. You can use this to buy all the things you need to find the really good roles _and _you can quit wasting time at the diner and –"

"Hey!" Rachel is mildly offended. "I really do enjoy working there!"

"No, I know baby," Quinn quickly appeases, "But now you don't have to! Now you can solely focus on auditioning!"

Quinn's face is lit up with excitement and Rachel wants to be excited too. Inside, she's reveling in what she deems the opportunity of a lifetime. But her mind is questioning all of this. Can she really take $100,000 from Quinn?

"Quinn…I can't just take this money. It's too much."

"But Rachel, _that's _the best part. This isn't really a gift. It's like a loan. I expect you to pay this back to me, and I know you will. Tenfold."

"But Quinn, who knows how long it will take to pay all of this back?"

"I'm still going to work Rachel. I still make my own money. I'll be fine. Plus, you don't have to use every single dime. Just what you need. But I want you to have this though. And once you land your first role, you'll be making your _own_ money. Good money. Which you'll pay back to me. And then I'll take that money and if necessary, invest in other things you do. This is a way of making money off of each other."

"So…you'll be like my own personal bank?"

Quinn smiles at Rachel's incredibly simplified example.

"Sure, that's fair I guess. I will give you large sums of money up front that you couldn't afford outright. Then once you can pay me back, you will, plus a set interest rate of 10%." Rachel looks appalled at the suggestion that Quinn would charge her interest. Quinn holds up her hands in surrender. "I have to charge interest. Otherwise I would never turn a profit Rachel. But 10% is nothing really. That's 10 cents on a dollar. The bank would never let you get away with a set rate like this."

Rachel rolls her eyes and shakes her head.

"What do you say?" Quinn is biting her lip and praying to God she didn't just sell her car for nothing.

"Pros and Cons?" Rachel says apprehensively.

Quinn is surprised that she's giving this so much thought but obliges.

"Okay, let's think…pros: you get to have all the things you need to give you a leg up on the competition. You can also hire people privately. A huge money saver in the long run for you. Most people don't have this kind of money in the beginning, so they go to an agency that doesn't charge much up front but once you start making real money, they take 20-30% of whatever you make. This means you can keep most of your own money once you start making it. Also! You no longer have to work at the diner. You can get better auditions. You can be home at a reasonable hour and _not_ be utterly exhausted. Aaaaand," she's doing her best to pull the last one out of her ass. "Oh! We can have extra spending money so we can go see shows and do fun stuff more often."

Rachel looks ready to cave right then and Quinn nods to herself, satisfied with her pro list. But in the honor of fairness, she presses forward.

"Cons, most foreseeable 12-20 months from now, if for some reason you don't land any roles….we'll be broke _and_ I won't have anything left to sell."

"Oh please. We'll be fine. I bet you I'll have something within 3 months. But worst case scenario, you have _two_ functioning kidneys. "

Quinn laughs and squeezes Rachel's hands, anxiously.

"So, you accept the terms then?" Quinn lets go of Rachel's hand to extend it to her.

Rachel rolls her eyes. "Yes. I accept." She lifts her hand and shakes Quinn's to solidify the deal.

"Great. I'll deposit the check in the morning. It's seriously stressing me out just sitting there. And then I'm trusting you to spend it wisely. On necessities, okay?"

Rachel nods, knowing full well that she wouldn't dare abuse Quinn's trust by blowing the money.

Quinn nods her head one more time before getting up from the table. She leans down to kiss Rachel on the cheek before heading to jump in the shower as Rachel continues to stare down at more money than she's ever seen in her whole life.

"I feel like it's safe to assume that between the worry and your general lack of cooking skills, you're actually starving. I'll make you something after I shower," Quinn shouts on her way to the bedroom.

Rachel doesn't nod or respond. She just continues to stare down at the check, speechless.

Her heart is so happy and she can feel it in her bones. This is the beginning of a whole new chapter for them.

* * *

Later that night, as Quinn is lying in bed typing on her laptop, Rachel watches her through the mirror atop the bathroom sink as she finishes brushing her teeth.

She has so many things she wants to say to Quinn.

Thank you.

I love you.

I can never repay you for this.

She is so happy right now that nothing can tear the smile off of her face. She's in such a good mood and the only thing that could make it better now is having Quinn's attention. Now is an excellent time to properly thank Quinn, preferably with her lips more than her words. But Quinn looks studious and flawless and focused. She's _too_ focused and not on Rachel, which is a problem in her book.

"Quiiiiin. Whatcha doing?"

Her voice is whiney but playful as she slips into bed next to Quinn.

Quinn's voice is monotone, as it always is when she's working, and her eyes never leave the screen when she responds. "Writing a chapter for my book. Chapter 8."

Rachel's eyebrows shoot up in surprise.

Last she heard, Quinn still had no idea what she was even going to write about. Now, not only does she have a topic but she is 8 chapters into writing? Why hadn't she told Rachel? And how many opportunities had she had to do so? How many times had Rachel asked her what she was writing on her laptop and gotten 'nothing' or 'work stuff' as the only response? And when Rachel had asked just a few weeks ago how the book was coming, why had Quinn told her that it was 'virtually nonexistent' when that obviously wasn't the case?

Saddened at the thought that Quinn had possibly been dishonest, Rachel sighs and sinks under the sheets, turning her back to Quinn. She was wrong. There was something that could whip the smile right off of her face.

It takes Quinn a few minutes to realize that Rachel has apparently gone to sleep without officially saying goodnight, which just irritates Rachel even more.

"Goodnight Rach."

But Rachel doesn't respond. After a few moments of silence, Quinn turns her head and is surprised to find that Rachel has turned her back to Quinn, which is unusual these days.

"Is something wrong, Rach?" Quinn whispers quietly, not wanting to completely disturb her in case she really is trying to go to sleep.

Rachel sighs yet again, frustrated with Quinn entirely now, but still says nothing.

"This is angry behavior." Quinn says almost to herself, confused. "Why are you mad at me?"

"I'm not mad Quinn."

"Yeah but that's always what you say right before you blow up." Quinn says with a little humor in her voice. "Seriously, what's wrong?"

Rachel turns her head into the pillow and takes a breath before speaking.

"Why do you keep secrets Quinn?"

"W-what? I don't keep—"

But Rachel is in no mood for semantics.

"Fine Quinn. Why do you choose to _omit_ certain information?"

Quinn opens her mouth to speak but nothing comes out.

But Rachel can't stand the silence. It makes her feel like Quinn is crafting a lie to cover up for how often she just fails to tell Rachel important things Rachel should be aware of.

"And don't even bother denying it because I feel like it's something you've been doing a lot lately. You just don't tell me things. Things I _should_ know about." Rachel turns towards Quinn, but continues to lay down and avoid eye contact as she speaks softly. "I'm your fiancée Quinn. I should know if you're leaving the office early to run errands. I should know what those errands are—"

"Rachel, I apologized for that, I said I was sorry so don't—"

"And I forgive you Quinn, but you also didn't tell me about selling your _car._ You don't think that's something we should've talked about first?"

"It was a surprise for _you_ Rachel! Plus it's _my _car! I didn't think I needed to talk it over with you!"

Now Rachel is offended and finding it hard to remain calm.

"And _that's_ the problem Quinn! It's _your_ car! And it's _your_ apartment! You're giving me _your _money! It's _your _book that I know nothing about! Is anything ever going to be ours?!"

Though she probably should, Quinn doesn't think twice before answering.

"No Rachel! Because you don't have anything! It's always been my car that I _let you_ drive sometimes and my house that you stay in _rent free_ and my money and my book that has actually has _nothing_ to do with you! So I really don't see the problem here."

She's definitely spitting out venomous words that, though completely true, should never be said.

This has all escalated so quickly and Quinn's frustration largely stems from the fact that despite the fact that she has given up one of her most valuable possessions so that Rachel can be happy, Rachel seems incapable of being satisfied. Somehow, a surprise that was meant to make Rachel's life easier is now being labeled as a "secret", an "omission". Quinn going out of her way for Rachel is now considered a betrayal.

"The problem Quinn," Rachel is barely containing her hurt. It's written all over her face and laced in every word she says. "The problem is that you don't understand what it means to be a couple. You don't understand what it means to be in this _together_."

Quinn slams her laptop and throws it towards the edge of the bed, furious.

"Rachel, are you kidding me?!"

She should stop yelling. Probably stop talking altogether. Right now. But God, she can't.

"You're seriously getting mad at me because I have a house I let you live in and I sold a car you had no ownership of? You-You're really going to be hurt over the fact that I haven't read every chapter of my book to you each night like a fucking bedtime story?! And are you really going to criticize me for not being in this 'together'?! If we're not in it together, it's because as always, I'm the one who goes out of her way to take care of you, and never once have I minded or complained, but you're the one who is rarely satisfied with anything. Even though it's all handed to you, for _FREE! _And I don't ask you for anything Rachel. All I need is a 'Thank you' and now, when I give you the very thing that's going to make your dreams come true, you can't even do that! I hand you a check for a hundred thousand dollars and all you can say is 'why don't you tell me every little thing you're thinking and doing, Quinn?' So no Rachel, I'm not going to feel bad about calling all of this what it is," she gestures to the room, "_mine._"

Quinn is breathing wildly. She is so terrified to look Rachel's way because she doesn't want to see the hurt that is sure to be evident on her face. Already, Quinn knows that she is wrong and she's being completely unfair. It's not as if Rachel does nothing around here. It's not as if Rachel has never done anything for her or contributed to their friendship. And, in fact, she knows that may be one of Rachel's greatest insecurities between them: that she takes more than she gives.

Quinn knows she should apologize. She desperately wants to, but she stays silent. Too embarrassed to speak.

She feels the bed move slightly but still doesn't look up until Rachel speaks.

"I'm-" She clears her throat to ensure that she's not going to cry. She won't give Quinn the satisfaction right now. Not after being yelled at and berated already. "I'm sorry. I didn't realize you feel that way Quinn."

Rachel heads out of the bedroom quickly without saying another word.

Quinn is paralyzed. She wants to follow her. She knows she should. But she also knows that Rachel probably needs some space after that outburst. It has been quite some time since Quinn has fought with Rachel like this. Hell, it's been years since they've fought at all. There is never anything to argue about. They are both so in tune with one another that there is no need for fighting. Or, at least there wasn't before.

But could she really even call this a fight? Really, it had been more like a personal attack on Rachel when all Rachel wants is a little more communication.

If Quinn is being honest, Rachel's request isn't entirely unreasonable, it was just ill-timed. Quinn had been in such a good mood, finally feeling like everything was on track and even feeling in the mood to write. But Rachel had ruined it by accusing her of lying, or withholding, information.

Quinn looks over to Rachel's empty side of the bed and then towards the door.

Quinn feels awful for what she had said but knows what both of them need right now is space. So she resolves to give them both the night to settle down and apologize in the morning.

But when Quinn wakes up the following morning after a restless nights sleep, she walks out into the living room prepared to apologize and beg for forgiveness if necessary and finds no one.

The apartment feels spacious but realistically it isn't that large. If Rachel isn't in Quinn's room and she isn't in the living room or kitchen, then she must not be here.

Quinn walks toward the door and sure enough, she finds Rachel's keys gone from the hook labeled 'Rachel' in chalk.

_I guess she left already. Maybe she had an audition or something. I'll just talk to her tonight. _

But as she turns away from the door to prepare herself for work, something catches her eye. She looks down on the table by the door to find a single key. Her heart drops as she immediately recognizes it as the key to her apartment. Rachel's key to her apartment.

And under it, a note, much like the one she left her parents when they left Boston all those months ago.

Her heart sinks as she reads the four words.

'Here's _your_ house back."

**######**

**Well, there's chapter 10. I apologize for the delay, but I agonized over this chapter. It was a tough one to write and I finally just had to post it because all I was doing was writing and re-writing. Hopefully, you enjoyed it. It's a bit of a filler chapter to make way for what's to come. Just a heads up, I will be out of town this week for Spring Break so it may take a little longer to get a chapter up! But when I do update, I will try to make it extra-long with some sexy times because you all definitely deserve that! Honestly, you guys have been amazing with your reviews and favorites and whatnot! Until next time! :) **

**Title by Nick Jonas**


	10. Come Back

33 texts. 17 missed calls. 5 voicemails.

Rachel continues to watch as her phone lights up once again with a picture of Quinn.

She looks beautiful as she stares up at Rachel, her smile frozen mid laugh.

At this point, Quinn has been calling for the last two hours and a part of her doesn't want Quinn to worry. She legitimately considers answering this time and her hand hovers over the green circle but before she can decide, the ringing ceases.

18 missed calls.

Rachel wants to at least listen to the voicemails. She wants to hear Quinn's voice so badly but she's afraid that once she does, she'll give in and head home.

And that would defeat the purpose of leaving.

_But what was the purpose of leaving? _Rachel wonders.

She told herself when she left that this was what was best. That she and Quinn weren't cut out to be lovers. That all of this was too difficult and was only putting a strain on the friendship.

But really, Rachel didn't think any of those things were true. Up until last night, things had been okay between the two of them. They had been wonderful actually. They had started getting the wedding together piece by piece. Their request to be married in Central Park had been denied, as other couples were already occupying all of her choice all throughout the day, but they both agreed they would find another location. They had officially asked Brittany and Sam to be their maid and man of honor, respectively. They had printed and sent out their five save-the-dates. One to her fathers, one to Sam, one to Brittany, one for Annie, and one for Quinn's parents.

They had gone back and forth on whether or not to invite them. Quinn had insisted that there was no sense in sending one as she thought it would only end up in the trash. And how could Rachel convince her otherwise? Judy and Russell hadn't even come to Quinn's graduation (though Judy had sent a lovely card), despite Rachel secretly sending them an invitation.

No, they had agreed it was unlikely they would attend the wedding, but eventually Rachel's insistence won out. And though Quinn would never admit it, the part of her that hoped (however foolishly) that her parents would put aside their differences for just one day to celebrate their daughter getting married compelled her to send them an invite.

They had yet to hear from either parent. But they knew they had received them because Annie immediately after receiving hers called to ask if it was too soon to RSVP and to inquire about where they were registered for wedding gifts. That was weeks ago.

But other than that, Quinn and Rachel had been happy. Or so she thought.

Admittedly, there had seemed to be a tension in the air shortly after they had moved in together. Rachel couldn't quite put her finger on it, but Quinn seemed tense and more irritated. Originally, Rachel had chalked it up to her job. She didn't exactly know the details of what it took to be an investment banker but she was sure that it was demanding. Some days, Quinn would return home looking absolutely defeated. And Rachel hated that, but knew that Quinn's job was the reason they were able to continue living in her nice apartment. It was the reason she could buy all of her vegan, gluten-free foods that she was accustomed to. Yes, Rachel was eternally grateful for Quinn's job and especially Quinn herself.

And she had thought she had said as much enough. She thought for sure that she had made Quinn very aware of how happy and satisfied she was with everything Quinn did for her, but according to Quinn, that was far from the case.

Rachel takes a deep breath to keep from tearing up yet again. Though she severely doubts she has anymore tears left to give.

She had cried silently all night on the couch, barely getting an ounce of sleep. And at this point, she is over it, though just the thought of Quinn's tirade last night makes her eyes water.

Even now, she still has no clue what sparked Quinn's anger. She knows she can be annoyingly inquisitive. She knows that she can be too aggressive and too invasive. But she's never heard those things from Quinn. She's never been made to feel that way by Quinn. Her bullies had said those things to her in high school. Her tormentors freshmen year constantly told her that she was nosy and annoying and altogether 'too much'. But never Quinn.

But apparently, it was the way Quinn felt.

But even still, it just didn't made sense. She had asked almost nicely. She had consciously asked in a way that she hoped would avoid conflict. She hadn't accused Quinn, or at least she hadn't meant to, of outright maliciously lying. She just wanted to know why it was that Quinn felt the need to keep some things to herself. Why she felt the need to keep things inside. She didn't want to fight, she just wanted Quinn to understand that she could talk to Rachel. That she _should_ talk to Rachel. She just wanted Quinn to start thinking of them as a "we" instead of two individuals whose decisions just happened to impact each other.

But then, as the conversation progressed, Rachel realized that her own anger and frustration began to arise from the fact that they she felt useless. She had begun to feel it as she was staring down at the check, waiting for Quinn to finish showering and it only magnified as Quinn went on and one about all the things that belonged to her and not Rachel.

Of course she was grateful for the money. Of course, she could use it and it would definitely help her chances of getting to Broadway.

But if Quinn had asked her the night before, when she had apparently come up with the idea, Rachel would've told her that she was okay with working at the dinner. She was okay with being tired all the time and constantly running from one place to the next. She was okay with shitty auditions for shitty parts and hearing no over and over again. She was perfectly okay with working her ass off to get to Broadway because it was all a part of the journey.

That has always been one of the many things that Rachel and Quinn have in common. They are hardworking and unrelenting in their efforts to succeed. They both have a strong work ethic and a firm belief that half the beauty of the reaching the destination is enjoying the journey.

In fact, Quinn had always said in regards to her fathers business that she would rather climb her way to the top than take her fathers chopper.

_"__You learn so much about yourself. You see exactly what you're made of," _she would say.

Well, that's how Rachel felt about Broadway. She would much rather fight and claw her way to the stage than have someone pluck her from a crowd and gently place her in the spotlight.

And yet, here was Quinn trying to pick her up and place her on the stage. And while Rachel would forever be grateful, a huge part of her just felt like Quinn was taking away from her the joy of the journey.

And Rachel would've said as much last night, if only she had been given the chance.

Rachel is pulled from her thoughts as her phone vibrates yet again. She looks down expecting to see Quinn's beautiful stupid face but instead she finds that it's her father calling.

She answers immediately, bringing it up to her ear and clearing her throat before greeting him.

"Oh thank God, sweetie. Hi! It's daddy!" She can hear him take the phone away from his mouth, "Hiram, she's okay! She just picked up!" Rachel chuckles as she hears some shuffling in the background.

"Honey, it's your father!" Hiram sounds closer now, but she can still hear her daddy in the background, asking him to put the phone on speaker.

"I know dad. What's up?"

"Don't you dare 'what's up' us!" Leroy shouts into the phone. Hiram shushes him.

"Quinn called us, honey. She's an absolute wreck. She said she hadn't seen you since you left last night. She said she called and texted and never got a response! Where are you? Are you okay?"

Now Rachel begins to wish she had picked up any one of Quinn's calls or at least texted her back to tell her she is alive. Of course she should've know that eventually Quinn would call her fathers looking for her.

"Yeah, no, I'm totally fine dad. I slept there last night, I just left really early this morning."

"You share a bed! How does she not know you're there?!" Leroy shouts and Hiram snaps at him to shut up, once more.

Rachel was sincerely hoping to avoid this but it's inevitable now that her father has called her out.

"We…we got in a fight last night, so I-I slept on the couch." The whole argument replays through her mind again and she has to fight to keep the tears at bay.

She hears both of them cooing now, already preparing to give her their usual words of encouragement.

"Aww, honey. Are you okay?" Leroy asks gently.

She tries to compose herself before responding, but the second she opens her mouth to tell him that she's perfectly fine, the dam breaks.

"No…no daddy. It was really really bad." She brings her hand up to wipe the rapidly falling tears off of her cheeks, but there are just too many to catch them all.

"She yelled at me. She never yells at me. We never fight."

Hiram's protective nature springs into action upon hearing his daughter cry, but Leroy and Hiram exchange words that she cannot understand and then she hears only her daddy's voice.

"Okay, papa bear went to cool down. Why don't you tell me what's going on, sweetheart?"

Leroy listens patiently as Rachel struggles through recapping their entire argument.

"I just don't understand why she's upset. I'm the one that feels out of the loop, you know? I'm the one that feels like an idiot because I didn't even know she had started her book. And she was just so mean. Like, someone I didn't even recognize daddy. And I don't even know why. I mean, am I wrong? Is it wrong to want to have a discussion about major decisions? Am I wrong for feeling like she should be open and honest with me? Am _I _the problem?"

Leroy sighs. He hates to hear his baby girl in any sort of pain. Hates to hear her cry. He wants to do what he has always done. He wants to tell her that the rest of the world is stupid and foolish. He wants to pull her in his arms and reassure her that she's the prettiest, most intelligent thing this world has ever seen, like he used to when she would come home from school crying.

But he has to remind himself that Rachel isn't his baby girl anymore. She is a woman. A woman who is in a serious relationship and seeking his help and telling her she's pretty and funny and smart isn't going to solve anything. So he tries a different approach.

"You want to know something funny Rachel? Your father and I had a similar fight once."

Rachel sniffles. "Really?"

"Really. He was fresh out of law school, he had just gotten a job with a great firm. And I was working at Howie's, just to make a little money while in between jobs." Rachel smiles to herself, remembering the photos she's seen of her daddy dressed in his bright pink Howie's outfit.

"And your dad was so excited about this new job, he actually went down Howie's one day and turned in a letter of resignation for me." Rachel gasps, having never heard this story before.

"Yes! I couldn't believe it either! But yes! He did! And when I finally got home that evening, he told me what he had done and I was livid. I was so upset with him that we didn't speak for days. But anytime I would pass him by, he would make comments about how unfair I was being. How he had done this for me. How it was supposed to be a pleasant surprise that I wouldn't have to work there anymore." That was all too familiar to Rachel.

"Obviously, we finally worked things out, and thank goodness because a few weeks later the adoption agency called and told us we were going to be getting a beautiful new born girl, but for a while there things were really rough. It took your dad forever to understand where I was coming from. I wasn't _trying _to seem ungrateful, but at the same time, I needed to feel like a contributor to the relationship."

"Exactly!" Rachel cuts in. "That's what I want! I just want to feel like I'm giving as much as I'm getting. Being able to _just _focus on Broadway sounds wonderful, but then I'm really bringing nothing to the relationship. And she says it's fine, but then when she gets upset, she throws it in my face that I do nothing. And it makes me feel terrible."

"Hmm, yes, and that's a problem as well. You two will have to learn how to fight better."

"No, dad, I don't want to fight at all. I hate fighting with her."

Leroy laughs and she thinks she can hear her other father in the background doing the same.

She hears Hiram's voice on the phone next.

"Oh, no honey. That's not possible. Avoiding a fight may have been possible when you were just friends, and honestly, I'm surprised you made it this long without a major argument. But you can't avoid fighting, you just have to learn to do it better. You have to almost set rules, so that each person knows what is and is not appropriate."

Her daddy grabs the phone back and it sounds like they're lightly scuffling until Leroy comes back on the line.

"And you two definitely need to talk and sort things out."

Rachel shakes her head at this. "No, I don't even want to see her right now. She really hurt me and I- She just was not the same person last night that asked me to marry her."

"The thing is, we all become people we don't recognize when we're upset. That's all the more reason to talk to her. Because honestly honey, that doesn't sound at all like the Quinn we all know. That girl stopped people from just looking at you funny in grade school. It's hard to picture her raising her voice. So there must have been a good reason."

"What good reason is there to yell?!" Rachel yells.

"Well, I don't mean a 'good' reason," Leroy back tracks. And Hiram speaks up, "but there has to be _a _reason. Probably more than what she's saying to you. It's possible she was just taking her anger out on you, but it may have nothing to do with you."

Rachel deflates and puts her elbows on her knees with her chin in her hands as she stares around at the bustling park. It's just after 10 a.m. and the park is teeming with runners, mothers, children, and pooping pets.

"Well, that's not fair either. And if there was something bothering her, she should've told me."

"You're probably right honey. But you'll never know until you talk to her," Leroy says gently.

"Yes, talk to her. Don't yell, don't raise your voice or accuse her of anything. Just _ask her _if there's something wrong," Hiram chimes in.

"And I've found that it also never hurts to ask if there's anything you can do or should do that would make things better or easier for her. From what it sounds like, she may be a little overwhelmed taking care of everything—"

"But she doesn't have to! I never asked her to take care of _every little thing!"_

"Okay, and definitely don't do that." Hiram laughs along with Leroy. "Don't interrupt her when she's speaking or she won't feel comfortable opening up. Just _listen._"

Rachel sighs. One of her greatest struggles is _just _listening.

"I know you don't necessarily ask her to do all the things she does for you Rachel, but if we're going to be perfectly honest,"

"And we just want to make it clear that we are your fathers and we love you no matter what," Leroy yells into the phone.

"You caaaaan be a bit needy at times."

"But I—" But Hiram quickly silences her.

"No, Rachel, listen to me. We know you don't always mean to, put sometimes that neediness creates in others the desire to please you. Especially Quinn. She has always been like that. You demand perfection as a part of everyday life, imagine how Quinn must feel about that. She might feel as though she has to be the perfect friend, and now the perfect fiancé just to meet your standards."

There is a long silence.

"I'm done now Rachel, you can speak." They both share a laugh, but Rachel does not.

"But daddies, I don't need _her _to be perfect. I demand it from myself but not necessarily her."

"Well, you should communicate that to her Rachel."

"Yeah, probably." Rachel leans back on the bench.

"Listen sweetie. You and Quinn are going to work this out. You will. But you both having some things you need to work on, especially before you walk down the aisle. SO, I would suggest you call Quinn, set up a time to talk and do what you do best. Talk about everything you've told me. Tell her every single thing you're feeling. And then when you're done, let her do the same. With _no _interruptions. Okay?"

"Okay daddy." None of that sounds like fun to Rachel.

"And whatever you do, don't get up from that conversation until you've worked things out. Your father and I have learned that if we say we'll finish it later, we never do."

"Okay dad. Thank you. Thank you both so much."

"No problem baby girl. We love you, okay?"

"Yes, and call us when everything is settled."

"I will. Love you too!"

They both shout a few more love you's into the phone before finally Rachel just has to hang up.

Sometimes they can be a bit much, but she's glad she answered their call. She needed to hear those things. But even still, she's not ready to talk to Quinn. She does send her a quick text to let her know she's alive, but then she turns off her phone and takes a walk around the park.

* * *

She has called every single person Rachel knows. Which turns out to be less than she thought. She has begged them shamelessly for information that they don't have. Apparently, no one knows where Rachel is. Not even Brittany. Even after numerous threats, Brittany still hadn't caved, which most likely meant that she knew nothing.

"_If I find out you're withholding information, I will take Lord Tubbington somewhere you will never find him and he will pay for your lies, do you understand me, Brittany? _

Brittany had been terrified and Quinn would've felt awful under any other circumstances but right now, she is finding it difficult to think about anyone but Rachel.

It's been almost two days since Rachel texted her to say that she was at least alive.

Quinn had been relieved to receive that message and immediately responded by calling her but there had been no answer. In fact, it had gone straight to voicemail. Rachel had texted her, then turned her phone off. Which was a clear indicator to Quinn that she didn't want to talk. And she had understood two days ago.

But now, she's downright sick with worry. Now she has no idea where Rachel is or if she's okay and like Rachel a few nights ago, she is picturing all of the things that could happen to a beautiful girl out alone at night in a city like this. She hasn't slept. She has barely eaten. And she probably looks as bad as she feels.

She hasn't moved from the couch in almost 24 hours. Her phone is charging through her laptop because the cord isn't long enough to be plugged in and still within arm's reach. She's been lying here, waiting for Rachel to text. Or call. Or, most preferably, come home.

But so far, nothing.

That is, until her phone rings loudly. She has a special ringtone for Rachel, Rachel singing 'For Good' and so she knows immediately that it is not Rachel calling. But she sits up and looks at the caller ID anyway. She decides to answer because what else is there to do.

"Hi Annie."

Her heart is filled with warmth as she hears the soothing voice of her childhood caretaker.

"Lucy." Annie is the only one that can get away with still calling her Lucy, a habit she never quite fell out of after Quinn asked to be called by her middle name when she started high school. "Have you heard from Rachel yet?"

Quinn sighs. "No, nothing since her text to say she was alive." Quinn is a fair mix between worried and irritated.

Annie sighs. "Okay well, I'm sure she's okay. She's probably just taking some time to breathe."

"It's been two days Annie, she's had plenty of breathing room."

"Well, Lucy, after the things you said, Rachel deserves to take as much time as she needs, don't you think?"

Quinn hangs her head in shame and runs her hand across her face with her free hands as Annie puts her back in her place, as always.

"Yes, I know. I was wrong, you've told me Annie." Quinn can't keep the irritation out of her voice. She hates admitting aloud that she's wrong, even when she knows that she is. But Annie has no problem snapping right back at Quinn.

"And I will tell you again and again Lucy. And you will listen like it's your first time hearing it."

Quinn opens her mouth to respond but is quickly silenced by Annie, who apparently isn't done talking.

"I swear, you are so stubborn Lucy Quinn and it drives me up the wall. You and your father are so alike it scares me sometimes." She mumbles that last part, not intending it for Quinn to hear, but she hears anyway and quickly protests.

"I'm nothing like him Annie," she huffs out.

But Annie just scoffs. "Oh, is that so? Because I would need every finger and toe just to count the ways."

Quinn doesn't respond. When she lets herself, she can admit that she and her father are a lot alike. But of course they are, he raised her more or less. He instilled all of his best qualities into her. She doesn't see the problem with that.

"What's so bad about being like him? So I'm stubborn, okay, but I'm hardworking. I'm a problem solver. I'm timely. I put others before myself. What's so bad about that, Annie?"

"Lucy, honey, you know I love you with all of my heart. And I love all of those things about you and about your father. But I have always hoped that you would take in all of his good and none of his bad, but I suppose that's just not possible. Because Lucy, there is a need inside of you to _control _everything, just like him." She says it so sadly, as if her heart is breaking at the thought.

"No there isnt." But even to her own ears, it sounds ridiculous. Quinn does love having control. Of her life, of her finances, of her future, and sometimes, even the people around her.

"Okay, yes I do. But being in control of a situation is business smart."

Annie laughs at that. "Yes, but Rachel is not a business. She's a person. You don't need to have control over her. Nor should you."

"But I don't _want _to control her," Quinn says adamantly because of that she is certain.

"You may not _want _to Quinn…but you do."

"No, I don't. You know how she is, no one can control Rachel Berry."

Annie smirks, knowing very well that this is true. Rachel has always marched to the beat of her own drum.

"Lucy, I don't want you to get upset with me, and this may very well be overstepping some boundaries, but your father probably feels the same as you. He probably has obvious interest in controlling Mrs. Fabray. He probably doesn't even realize that he does. But you see it. I see it. We all see it. He doesn't have to exert power with an iron fist because he exerts it subtlety. Everything he does is just another display of his power. His control. He buys her a big fancy house to live in, so that she spends her days decorating instead of at the office with him, running a company she co-founded. He sells her car every few months and buys her a new one. What he considers a romantic surprise, is more of a reminder that nothing that is hers is really _hers_. He pays for and stocks her closet with the nicest shoes and clothes you ever did see. And you know your mother, she loves the attention. But…sometimes, she asks for things. Little things. More time together. Less time at the office. More decisions that they can both be a part of. And he always responds the same way." Annie stops talking.

But it's not as if she needs to go on. Because Quinn knows exactly what he says and it sends a chill down her spine. And it is then that she sees what's so bad about being so much like him.

Once, when she was in elementary school, she remembers her mother asking for the whole family to be home by 5 p.m. because she wanted them all to make dinner together. Quinn had easily agreed, still at the age where doing things with her parents was synonymous with having the time of her life, but her father had been much less enthusiastic. He had immediately complained that he had far too much to do at the office to come home just to help with dinner. There was silence in between them for a few minutes before Russell had instructed Quinn to go get her backpack for school. But before Quinn had even reached the stairs, she had heard raised voices. Her parents didn't fight often and the yelling almost intrigued her, so she crept back towards the kitchen to hear better.

"Russ, all I want is a nice quiet evening. You haven't been home in time for dinner in three days," Judy says meekly.

"Judy, believe me, I would much rather be here with you and Lucy. But I have to work honey. This house and those clothes and Luce's piano lessons don't pay for themselves. You know that."

"Yes, I know that Russ. But don't you think they can survive _one _night without you?"

Her father sighs loudly. "I don't understand you sometimes. You love this house and your car. You love the vacations and the yachts and the thousand dollar champagne. You love to shop and spoil Lucy. Yet you don't appreciate the work I do to provide you with all of these things. Why can you never just say 'thank you'? Why is everything I do never enough?"

He doesn't yell it at her. His voice is calm and almost sad. He cups his wife's face and looks her in the eye when he asks her virtually the same question that she asked Rachel. Except she had yelled it. With venom on her tongue and so much anger in every word.

And yet again, she feels shame. So much so that she wants to cry.

She is like her father in so many ways, but not all of them are positive.

"Lucy?"

"Y-yeah?"

"You're not your father, you know?"

She doesn't believe that though. Because as she replays Friday night over and over again in her mind, she is him.

Telling Rachel to be more grateful. Telling Rachel to just say 'thank you' for everything she does that Rachel never even asked her to do.

Her mother hadn't asked for that house. Or the cars or the boats or the vacations or the shoes or clothes. He had handed all of those things to her of his own free will, so to hold it over her head after the fact was so incredibly unfair. And when her mother had asked for something, something simple and entirely manageable, he had made her feel guilty for wanting more, as if what he had provided wasn't enough.

And she is disgusted with him in an instant. And then disgusted with herself.

Because that's what she had done to Rachel. She had taken care of all of Rachel's visible needs without being asked then got upset when Rachel had asked for more of the things she _actually _wanted.

How could she have been so stupid? How could she not see what she was doing? How could she not hear the stupidity and the insensitivity of her words? How did she end up _just like him_?

The only thing that pulls her away from mentally berating herself is Annie's voice tearing through her thoughts.

"Lucy Quinn Fabray, you listen to me. Are you listening?"

Quinn makes a small sound to acknowledge that she is, in fact, listening.

"Lucy, I have watched you grow up every single day for more than 15 years. I have watched you grow from a pudgy little girl into a beautiful young woman. And yes, maybe you picked up a few unsavory habits from that father of yours, but you are by no means him. You are the sweetest thing I've ever met and even though you said some unkind things to Rachel, I know you didn't mean them. And that's the difference between you and your father. You didn't meant to hurt her, Lucy, I know that."

Quinn is a wreck at this point and just barely gets the words out clearly.

"I didn't. I didn't mean to be so cruel. But now she won't even talk to me. She doesn't even want to come home because of what I said."

"Well, Lucy, I'm sorry but that is the product of _your_ behavior. And you can't get upset when you realize that your actions have consequences. The way you treated her the other day has led to a loss of trust. She trusted you to treat her with kindness and respect and did you do that?"

Quinn knows by now that when Annie asks her a question, she's expected to respond. It's not rhetorical.

"No," she cries out.

"That's right, you didn't." Annie's voice is gentle but stern. "And so she may not feel safe coming home again until that trust is restored. But the good news is that it _can _be restored Lucy. If you're willing to put in the work that it takes to earn her trust back."

"I am." Quinn's voice is strong, knowing that she is prepared to do whatever it takes to earn Rachel's forgiveness.

"Well then sweetie. That's all that matters. Messing up may be a normal occurrence. Though I hope it's not, I don't have time to be on the phone doling out advice every day."

Quinn laughs a little and finds that she feels better already.

"Just remember, it's not your problems that define your relationship, it's how you handle them. No one cares about the falling down. It's all about whether you choose to get back up or not. Do you understand me, Lucy?"

"I understand," Quinn's voice is clear now that she has forced herself to stop crying. She has no excuse for the tears because Annie is right. She messed up, big time, but she's going to fix it.

_If it can even be fixed. _

But Quinn forces herself not to think like that.

"Good, alright now, I'm going to let you go. We have some guests coming over tonight so your mother will need some help preparing dinner."

"Okay, Annie." But just as Quinn is about to say goodbye, she thinks of one last thing.

"Wait, Annie! How…how is my mom doing?"

Annie smiles despite that fact that Quinn cannot see it. "She's doing well. She's a strong woman Lucy. You don't have to worry about her."

Quinn nods. Annie is probably right. Her mom has been dealing with her dad for decades so surely she is used to his behavior by now, which is a sad thought in itself.

"Yeah, okay. Well, tell her I love her. And I miss her, please," Quinn speaks softly over the line.

"Of course Lucy. And she misses you too you know."

Quinn finds that hard to believe as she still hasn't called her directly, but she doesn't want to argue with Annie over it.

"Okay, well, I'll talk to you later Annie. Thank you for the lecture." There is a hint of sarcasm in her voice, but mainly gratefulness.

"Anytime Ms. Lucy. Goodbye."

Quinn pulls the phone down from her ear and leans back onto the couch, taking in everything that Annie has told her.

She feels better now than she has since she found her key and Rachel's note on the table. She is ready to talk to Rachel, ready to make things right.

She is just contemplating whether she should try calling Rachel again or if she should let it be and give her her space when she hears a faint shuffling noise behind her. She turns her head to find the source of the noise and nearly jumps out her skin when she spots it.

Her hearts stops beating and speeds up all at once.

"Rachel."

**######**

**Please don't hate me for leaving it there! I actually was just so happy and overwhelmed by all of your amazing reviews that I had to get you guys something before I left town for the rest of the week! You guys seriously made my heart smile with all of your kind comments and that largely inspired me to push this chapter out. I know it's not the promised sexy times, but that should come next, when we finally start to see them work things out. But this one won't be easy fix, so prepare yourselves for that. Hopefully you guys enjoyed this chapter and I will see you guys sometime next week! I also apologize for any mistakes in my haste. I'll edit when I get the chance. Until next time! :D **

**Title by Us The Duo **


	11. Crawling Back To You

"Rachel."

Rachel actually looks startled to see Quinn. Quinn's presence is actually the opposite of what she is expecting. It's Monday. Quinn works Monday through Friday 8-5. Sometimes earlier and sometimes later, but Rachel thought for sure that if she dropped in during the dead middle of the day, she would be safe.

Apparently, she was wrong.

"Quinn." Rachel's voice is breathy.

She can already tell by looking at her red, puffy eyes and disheveled appearance that Quinn's presence is only going to make this harder, but Rachel is resolved to do what she came here to do.

"I'm…I used the spare key…I hope that's okay."

Quinn just nods, dumbly.

"Of course it's okay. I-yeah, of course."

Quinn has no idea what to say. She wants so badly to run to Rachel. To look her over and make sure she's okay. But she doesn't think that Rachel will allow that. So she works hard to keep her feet frozen in her spot as she waits for Rachel to make the first move.

"I-I just came by to grab a few things."

Quinn nods again. Then stops to really think about that.

"Wait..things-things for what?"

And by the look on Rachel's face as she refuses to make eye contact, Quinn can tell she doesn't want to know the answer.

"My work uniform…" Rachel starts and Quinn breathes a sigh of relief.

_She just came to get her clothes for work_, Quinn replays in her head and allows herself to calm down.

Rachel doesn't continue, she simply walks past her tentatively and heads towards the bedroom.

Maybe Quinn shouldn't, but she follows Rachel. Desperate to know where she's been the last few days.

"If you don't mind me asking…where were you this weekend? I…" she doesn't want to sound like a crazy person, but she wants Rachel to know that she was worried. That she cared enough to call all of Rachel's friends to find out about her whereabouts.

"I was worried." Quinn finishes. "I called around looking for you and no one had seen you, not even Brittany and Sam."

"I stayed at a hotel this weekend. I needed some alone time."

Quinn nods.

"Oh, yeah. Okay…"

She wants to ask a million more question but she never even gets the chance because her mind absolutely short circuits when she sees Rachel go into her closet and pull out a rather large suitcase.

Her heart starts pounding faster at the implications of what this suitcase means.

"What…what are you doing Rachel?" And again, Rachel avoids eye contact and takes a breath to deliver news that Quinn absolutely does not want to hear.

"Quinn…we made a mistake. We…we thought we could do this, but…"

Quinn immediately shakes her head, refusing to accept this. Of all the scenarios in her head, Rachel leaving was the absolute worst case scenario and Rachel is so resilient that Quinn hadn't even worried about her quitting on them.

No, this is a scenario she neither expects nor one that she will accept.

She would apologize until she was blue in the face. She would get on her knees and beg for forgiveness. She would sleep on the couch and be at Rachel's beck and call as punishment. But Quinn would not quit. She was _not_ going to let Rachel walk out of that door.

"No Rachel," she says with a strength she doesn't actually possess. "We can do this. This is just a little bump in the road. Just…come home and we'll work this all out."

But words that are meant to reassure Rachel only seem to enrage her. Rachel unzips in the suitcase on the bed in a hurry.

"But that's the thing Quinn! This isn't home! At least not mine! It's _yours. _You said so yourself."

Quinn shakes her head again, prepared already with her apologies.

"I never meant those things Rachel. I wasn't thinking clearly. I shouldn't have said any of that stuff." Quinn says with so much guilt and sincerity in her voice that Rachel almost caves.

But she steels her resolve and approaches her dresser to pull out a few clothes. She doesn't know how much she may need because she doesn't know how long it'll take her to find her own place, but she just packs everything to be on the safe side.

"If you didn't mean it, at least somewhere deep inside of you, you wouldn't have said it."

"That's not true Rachel, I _swear_ to you, I don't feel that way. Of course what's mine is yours, you know that!"

"I don't want yours Quinn! I don't even want mine! I want _ours! _I want to come home to a house _we made_ _together._ I want to stop feeling like just a permanent guest in someone else's home. I want to be able to put up pictures on the walls, without having to ask and beg you for permission. I want to go out and fight over which furniture best suits us. I want to be involved in decisions that affect the both of us. I want to know what's going on with you, I want to know where you are and what you're up to. Not like a minute to minute play by play, but I want you to think of us as an 'us' and you just don't seem capable of that."

Rachel finishes with her bras and underwear, even in the midst of an argument, folding them neatly to make space for everything else. She still hasn't looked at Quinn. She can't. If she looks, she'll break and after two days of deep consideration, she realizes she cannot change her mind. She has to follow through with this, no matter how much it hurts.

"Rachel, I hear you. I do. And I understand completely and I am _begging _you to just give me another chance. I can fix this. _We _can fix this."

Rachel's heart is breaking at the sound of Quinn's broken voice.

_She sounds like this is killing her._

She was not expecting this at all. She had expected Quinn to be upset, but understanding. She had expected compliance. Agreement even that this wasn't working. But Quinn was…fighting. For her.

But Rachel reminds herself why she's doing this and continues packing.

"Quinn. We can't do this. We thought we could. We thought we could turn friendship into this amazing life-long commitment but I just…I just can't. It's like we skipped over all of these crucial elements to any normal relationship, thinking we could do without them. But it's…it's all too hard. And the last thing I want is to lose you. I don't want to lose our friendship, it's the most important thing to me." Rachel works hard to rub her eyes dry. If she cries, she's afraid she won't have it in her to do what's right. What needs to be done. "So, I suggest that we terminate this contract. We go back to being friends and-"

"No!" Quinn yells, finally having had enough. "No Rachel. I-I don't want to go back. I don't want to terminate anything."

Rachel finally looks up at Quinn and finds that she looks absolutely crazed. If this were any other moment, Rachel would have a great laugh about Quinn's appearance. Her hair is a greasy mess. Her clothes are wrinkled. This is not her usual, put-together Quinn and she can't help but feel responsible for this new, unhinged person in front of her.

"Quinn, please." If Quinn wants to beg, then two can play this game. "_Please, _don't make this harder than it has to be. If we end this now, we can still salvage what's most important. Our friendship. I can't lose that."

"Rachel, I can't lose _you._ I can't. I need you in my life."

Quinn approaches Rachel finally, tired of giving her what may be deemed as an appropriate amount of space. She steps right into Rachel's personal space and pulls both of her wrists so that Rachel can no longer put her socks neatly in the luggage and she actually has to turn towards Quinn if she doesn't want to be in pain.

"You can still have me Quinn. But only if we end this now. I don't want to grow to hate you, and I would die if you ever grew to hate or resent me."

"No, Rachel! I could _never _hate you. And at this point…" she knows like the night of Rachel's birthday when she first proposed this idea that what she is about to say cannot be taken back and it will change everything all over again. But being honest seems like the only way to keep Rachel from walking out the door. "I can't go back. I can't just go back to being your friend. I love—" but she can't bring herself to do it. Because as much as Rachel could feel the same, she could also reject the fact that Quinn is falling in love with her. So she lets the fear of losing Rachel take over and finishes with, "what we here. I love what we we've built together. This whole new thing."

But again, that only angers Rachel more. Quinn's grip on her wrists is tight and only convinces her more that she can't stay here with Quinn like this.

"What have we built, hmm Quinn? Tell me, what have _we _built?"

Quinn opens her mouth to speak, but nothing comes out. Rachel tears her hands away from Quinn's grasp.

"Exactly Quinn! We haven't _built _anything. We literally just put two lives next to each other, we didn't merge them. We didn't combine them. We just said 'Let's do this thing' and changed a few things here and there and started making out and we thought that would be enough, but it's not!"

She's crying now. And she hates herself for it. But not as much as Quinn, knowing she is the reason for Rachel's tears.

Quinn is at such a loss. She wants to help. She doesn't want Rachel to hurt anymore. But she has no idea what to say or do. So she does what has always worked best with Rachel. She asks.

"What do you need from me Rachel? If what I've done isn't enough so far, then I'll give more."

"No Quinn! Because you're tired of giving, remember?!" Rachel goes back to the drawer and pulls her pajamas out.

Quinn grows frustrated. Somewhat with Rachel because she's not even trying to talk this through, but mainly with herself because that is exactly what she said to Rachel.

"Then...then what can I do?!"

"You can't do anything Quinn. I'm leaving. And you have to let me go. So that we can protect what matters most." Rachel manages to clear her tears and continues placing things in the suitcase. As she evaluates the situation, it's clear that she will either need another suitcase or she will have to come back later.

But she can't come back. If she comes back and has to do this all over with Quinn, she will give in.

Because truthfully, a large part of her doesn't even want to do this. A large part of her heart is telling her that they could get past this. They could work through it. But that could involve more fighting and yelling and tears and she hates fighting with Quinn. She hates their relationship being in limbo like this. She needs stability. Stability that she has always found in their friendship. She needs to get back to that while she still can.

She heads to the closet thinking she could probably fit a few shirts in the bag, but when she comes back she finds that her bag has been unpacked. Most of the contents spilled all over the floor and bed.

"Quinn stop this. I have to pack. I have to go."

Rachel puts the shirts down gently in the now empty suitcase, but Quinn pulls them right back out.

"Quinn _stop_ it!"

"No Rachel! You can't leave. I won't let you. I won't let you do this." She is crying. She surely looks like a mess. But she has made up her mind, she is not letting Rachel go. Because she already knows if she leaves, she won't come back.

"Quinn, you don't control me. If I want to go, I can." She means to sound strong, but she is breaking. Her resolve is breaking seeing Quinn like this.

"Yes, you can, but god Rachel…I don't want you to go." Quinn is pulling Rachel's pajamas from her hands and they both pull back and forth, each with their own goals. Rachel trying desperately to leave and Quinn desperate for her to stay.

"Quinn, please stop this. I am _leaving_." Rachel yanks hard enough to take control her pajama shirt and she throws it in the bag recklessly. She needs to go, _now. _

But at those words, Quinn doubles her efforts, growing more frantic by the moment. She can't let Rachel leave.

"No! Rachel! Tell me what I can do! I will do anything! Anything! I didn't mean those things Rachel, you have to know how sorry I am."

Rachel reaches down to pick up all her bras and underwear and socks and throws them into the bag, angrily.

"You can't just say sorry and fix this Quinn. You…you really hurt me. You, of all people, were supposed to take care of me. Of my heart." She looks up at Quinn who has tears running down her face and her heart breaks all over again. "And you didn't. The one person I trusted with my heart, with my feelings, all of my insecurities and you just gave me this huge 'fuck you'. You know, you _know, _how hard I try to make things fair and even for us. But they never are, they never have been, and they probably never will be but I try! And for you to tell me that I don't isn't fair! For you to throw it in my face because you're angry isn't fair! You hurt me Quinn and for you to beg me to stay with someone who hurts me…that isn't fair either!"

Quinn encroaches again into her personal space and grabs Rachel's face. She stares into her eyes for a long moment then leans forward suddenly and presses their lips together. Rachel is at first surprised, but even still, the feeling of Quinn's lips is a welcomed one. She needs this, and if she's going to leave, the least she can do is allow herself to enjoy this one last time.

Quinn roughly kisses her and she can taste the salt of the tears between them. This isn't healthy. This isn't the right thing to do, but Rachel still wraps her arms around Quinn's neck and pulls her impossibly closer.

Kissing Quinn is the greatest feeling she's experienced in her life thus far. It feels like flying and soaring and singing on Broadway to a packed house and if Rachel had ever done drugs, she imagines this might be what it feels like to be high.

She pushes her tongue into Quinn's mouth and Quinn moans out, grabbing now at her shirt and tugging her closer so that their bodies are perfectly molded together. Their breathing is heavy and the air between them is filled with an unrivaled sexual tension. Rachel's hands are moving frantically, everywhere all at once, knowing this may be the last chance she ever gets to experience Quinn like this.

She moves her mouth from Quinn's lips and kisses her jaw all the way down to her neck, reaching for the bottom of Quinn's shirt. She tugs it upwards in a haste, eager to have it out of the way, but she is suddenly met with resistance.

Quinn's hands find hers and stop their movements.

"Rachel stop. Stop. Listen, I…I want you. So badly," Rachel is panting, and Quinn is trying to get all the words out while still breathing in much needed air. "But not like this. Not while we're both like this."

Quinn puts Rachel's hands down by her sides and places her own hands onto Rachel's hips. As she looks up at Quinn, Quinn places her forehead against Rachel's.

They are both breathing heavily, with the hot air and the intensity mixed in between them. Rachel decides that if they aren't going to take their kissing any further (even though she admits this would've been a terrible way to experience sex with Quinn for the first time) she should pull away, but Quinn's grip on her waist only tightens.

This is so unlike what Rachel ever expected that she just has to know. She needs to know why Quinn is holding onto this so desperately. Why she is fighting the idea of going back of the safety and stability of their friendship.

"Why won't you just let me leave?" Rachel sounds positively exhausted and Quinn sees a moment of weakness that she is fully prepared to take advantage of.

Quinn keeps them pressed together, but closes her eyes. She can't see Rachel's face as she says these things or they will never come out.

"Why? Because sleeping with you in my arms is the best sleep I've ever had. And waking up next to you feels like dreaming with my eyes open. Because I have kissed so many people, but kissing _you_ feels like getting lost and finding myself all at once. Because now, I see fireworks when you smile at me. Because my heart beats a little stronger every time you say 'I love you'. And you may not believe me, but coming home to you is the highlight of my day and kissing you goodbye every morning has become the hardest thing to do. Somewhere along the way, something happened that I didn't think was possible. I found that I could love you _more_. I never imagined that I could love you more, or know you better, but now I do. And I love it! I love what's happening between us Rachel, even if I can't explain it. I love whatever this is and I don't want to lose it. Because I know…I know I could never go back to just being your friend. Obviously if things didn't work out, I would still need you in my life, but seeing someone else hold you and kiss you and have you then the way I have you now…." She doesn't finish that thought. She can't bring herself to do it, so she just closes her mouth and swallows the bile in her throat.

There is a long, chilling silence.

Until Rachel nods against her forehead.

"I can't imagine it either Quinn. And…I don't want to," she finally admits, not just to Quinn but, to herself.

Somewhere along the way, things have shifted between them. Pretending to be in love so that others would believe it quickly became less of a chore and more of a habit. And then eventually, those habits became their reality. And though Rachel can't say she is _in_ _love _with Quinn, she knows that it is only a matter of time. If they manage to fix things, there is certainly a chance that she could fall in love with Quinn. She had already felt it here and there before this weekend.

Quinn would make her dinner, like she always had, and Rachel would swoon. Quinn would kiss her cheek and compliment her and Rachel would blush and her heart would swell with love for Quinn and her adorations.

Something was changing in the both of them, and just as Quinn's treatment of her wasn't fair, it didn't seem fair to Rachel that she take away an opportunity for them to experience something as wonderful as whatever this could be.

And, as if able to read her thoughts, Quinn opened her eyes and looked at Rachel intensely. She reaches her hands up to cup Rachel's face gently. She gathers strength from somewhere deep inside her and manages to look Rachel dead in the eyes.

"I love you Rachel. Like you're the only thing that matters. Like you're the only thing that exists in my world. And if you give me just _one_ chance, I will do whatever it takes to fix this. If you need me to change, I will. If you need some space, I can give you that. If you need me to get down on my knees and beg you to stay in front of a crowd of people at Grand Central Station, I swear, I will. Just tell me what you need and I will do it. But whatever you do, don't just quit on me. I can't lose you, baby."

Rachel has to close her eyes when Quinn calls her baby.

It's all become too much.

Can she really live her whole life without having Quinn like this ever again? Without ever hearing Quinn call her baby again? Now that she knows exactly what she will be missing, can she just walk away?

Sure, Quinn had hurt her. Badly. Sure, Quinn had been snappy and unduly harsh. But relationships weren't always good times. They were hard work. They required patience and maintenance. And most importantly, relationships weren't like friendships. They needed a special sort of attention that both of them had failed to provide.

Maybe if they had thought this through a little more, communicated a little better, they could've avoided this. But they can't go back now. They can only move forward. And as Rachel reaches her hands up to Quinn's face, to run her fingers across her swollen pink lips and over her pale skin and across her lovely cheek bones, she decides that she really does want to move forward. She does want to at least try to work things out.

Because if she leaves now, with Quinn in this state after bearing her soul, there's a possibility that she will ruin any chance of them being friends again anyway.

She has to give this her best effort, they both do, so that even if it fails, they will know it will not be for lack of trying.

Rachel wipes away a lone tear from Quinn's cheek and pushes herself up a little to kiss the now dry spot.

Quinn's eyelids flutter closed at the feeling and it takes everything inside of her to not cry. She can feel it. This is the end of them. Despite Quinn's attempts to get her to stay, Rachel is going to leave. And really, she has no right to cry. She did this to herself. She has no one to blame but herself. She sighs heavily and her breath hits Rachel right in the face.

"Rach-"

"Quinn, I-"

Quinn stops speaking immediately and Rachel continues.

"I need more from you. And you may think you've given enough, but I need you to give things I actually _want _and _need. _Not money. Not a few pictures on the wall. Not secrets disguised as surprises. I need a relationship that belongs to the both of us. You can't _own _the relationship, Quinn. And that's how it feels. It feels like you have all of this control and I have…nothing. And I can't go on feeling like that."

Quinn's hands fall away from Rachel in defeat, but Rachel reaches down to grab them and she is met with no resistance. They are cold and clammy, but Rachel's holds tight anyway.

"So, I'm going to go." Quinn tries to pull her hands away, but Rachel just holds tighter. Quinn tries to look away, but Rachel's imploring tone urges her to make eye contact, so she does. "No, listen. I'm going to go, but I'll be back. On Friday, I'll be _back_." Quinn's eyes brighten for the first time since Rachel has arrived and she knows instantly that she has made the right decision.

"I'll be back on Friday and we'll talk. We'll both take this week to calm down. We need to have a discussion that isn't so heated and emotionally charged. So I propose that you take this week to get your thoughts together. And I'll do the same. And..and I need you to do me a favor."

"Anything." Quinn says without hesitation which makes Rachel smile a little.

"I need you to write out a list of things that you need from me." Quinn goes to shake her head, but Rachel cuts her off knowing exactly what she is about to say. "No Quinn. Don't tell me you don't need anything, you must need something. Even if it's space or something you think I might not like…I need to know. And I'll do the same for you. I have some small things that I would like to change and I think it will be good to get it out there so that we both know what is expected us. Our relationship changed without us realizing it and I just think that we have to adjust the contract to account for these changes. Does that make sense? Do that sound okay?"

Quinn nods quickly, "Yes, whatever you want. As long as you come back."

Rachel nods once and leans up to kiss Quinn's cheek. It is so soft that if not for the heat left behind, Quinn would not believe it happened at all.

Rachel then pulls away and throws the last few things into her bag before zipping it up.

She grabs the handle of the suitcase and picks it up to put in on the floor.

Quinn is standing there not saying a word, but she looks positively pitiful. She doesn't want Rachel to go and at this point, Rachel barely wants to go. But she has to. Because things always get worse before they get better. Because things are always darkest before the dawn. But as she reaches the door frame preparing to leave, she turns back to Quinn one last time.

"Friday," she reassures her. And then she leaves. And Quinn is left again, but this time with more hope in her heart than before. She immediately finds a sheet of paper and a pen and begins working on her list.

**######**

**Not as long as I had hoped, but I figured you guys wouldn't mind if the chapter came a few days early. Hopefully this chapter met everyone's standards. I took all of your reviews to heart and tried to incorporate them into the chapter. And a HUGE THANK YOU to everyone who has reviewed these last few chapters. It's such a pleasure to read your thoughts and it always makes me laugh when you guys choose sides of who's right and who's wrong. I will also say that I do like replying to reviews so I would love it if you guests out there would log in so then I could reply to your comments. Sometimes you guys have the most interesting reviews that I would love to have a conversation about, but I can't. :( **

**As usual, please let me know how you liked it or if you didn't! And thank you for reading! Now that they have decided to work things through, semi acknowledging their feelings, they have a lot of work cut out for them. BUT the good news is that I have decided that we won't have any Finchel drama. I've tried my hardest to find a good place to incorporate him, but there's so much going on between the two of them already that him popping up felt unnatural. So rest assured, though drama and angst may ensue, there will be NO Finn! :) Alright, I'm done rambling, I just thought you all would like to know that! Until next time!**

**Title by The Backstreet Boys**


	12. Stay, Stay, Stay

The days tick by so incredibly slow that, at times, it feels like time is frozen completely.

But somehow she has made it through the week without Rachel. Just barely.

As instructed, she has prepared her list. She has written out everything that she feels she needs from Rachel, even the things she doesn't think Rachel will be happy about, and surprisingly, her list is quite long.

She looks at the clock on her desk yet again.

4:31 p.m.

She rolls her eyes, refusing to believe that it has only been one minute since she last checked the clock.

It is Friday afternoon and she is eager to get home. Tonight is the night that she and Rachel are to have their talk.

She was originally hopeful when Rachel left because Rachel had promised to come back. She had promised that she would return so they could calmly talk things through.

But after three days of not hearing from her, Quinn had begun to worry that Rachel had changed her mind about them. Or worse, that she had never meant it and had only told Quinn what she wanted to hear in order to escape the situation.

But just as Quinn had started to believe the doubts that were filling her head, Rachel had texted. As if an angel sent to deliver her from her own personal hell, Rachel had texted midday on Thursday.

**_How's 6 on tomorrow evening? _**

It was short and very much to the point, but Quinn would take whatever she could get.

After giving it the obligatory 10 or 15 minutes, so as not to seem too eager, Quinn worked on her reply.

**_Okay, sounds good. _**

_No, that sounds too uptight. Like I don't care one way or another if she comes over. _

**_Okay! Sounds good! :) _**

_No! Now I sound like I'm excited that we're fighting! _

**_Purrrfect! *cat emoji*_**

_Any other time, Rachel would find this hilarious, but this seems like a bad time for humor. I want her to know I'm taking this seriously. _

She types and erases and types and erases several times until she manages to craft the perfect message.

**_Perfect!_**

Not too overzealous, but still she wants to make it clear to Rachel that she is anticipating their talk.

She glances at the clock again.

4:33.

She leans her chair back from her cubicle and glances towards her boss's office. She glances around the large office, careful not to fall out of her chair, but she doesn't see Mr. Keegan anywhere.

She leans back into her cubicle and calls out into the open.

"Hey, Roger?"

Within moments, a head pops up from the cubicle directly in front of her.

Roger's bright blue eyes find hers immediately, obviously eager for someone to talk to.

"You rang?" He smiles widely at her. His eyes sparkle and his perfect white teeth seem to gleam at her.

She knows he probably has a crush on her. They both started at the same time and he seems to have attached himself to her since, insisting on eating lunch together in the break room and volunteering for the same projects as her. But really, she doesn't mind it. He's really a sweet guy, a gentleman in fact, and if there was no Rachel in the picture, she would at least say yes if he asked her out.

But fortunately, he hadn't asked. Though she was sure it was only a matter of time, she was grateful for the extra time to think of a way to come out to the office. Keegan and Dwyer was an incredibly large company, with 14 floors and she was sure that the day she announced that not only was she engaged but she was marrying a woman, all 14 floors would know.

It wasn't as if she was embarrassed by any means, but she didn't know how the company felt about its employees being open about their sexuality.

"Um, Quinn? Did you need something?"

She snaps back to reality at the sound of his voice.

"Oh, yeah. Sorry." She shakes her head to clear her thoughts and looks up at him, whispering, "Is Mr. Keegan in his office?"

Roger looks towards the large, glass encased office for a moment.

"Uhh, no I don't see him. I think he's in a meeting on 14. He probably won't be done for another hour or so. You know how long the meetings can be on 14. Why? What did you need?"

Quinn checks the clock once more.

4:35.

"I need to leave a little early. I have plans tonight and I would like to get home and spruce the place up a bit."

That's a lie. Over the past week, without Rachel around to create manageable chaos in the apartment, the place had been spotless. Quinn is incredibly cleanly, always told by Annie that cleanliness is next to Godliness, so there is nothing to 'spruce up'. She does want to get dinner started for the two of them though. She had originally thought they could just order in, but she would really like to do something special for Rachel. Something to say, 'I've missed you'.

"Must be some date, you keep zoning out." He almost sounds glum.

"It's not a date," she immediately responds because it's the truth. But she realizes she should've just left him thinking it was because now the smile is back on his face, brighter than ever.

Yes, he definitely likes her.

_Oh dear God. _

She realizes that after working things out with Rachel, she should find a way to let everyone, or at least Roger, know she's taken.

"Well, I mean, Keegan worships the ground you walk on. So I'm sure if you left a few minutes early, he wouldn't mind."

Quinn bites her lip pensively.

She hasn't been working here very long. And she is in no position to just leave 20 minutes early. But If she doesn't get off before 5, she will be stuck in the 5 o'clock crowd on the subway, or worse, the traffic on the streets if she hails a cab.

These are the days she wishes more than ever she still had the options to work at her father's company. Not only would she have left an hour ago but she could've taken her own helicopter home.

But even still, she figures that since Keegan really _does _adore her and it is _just _20 minutes, she can afford to chance it. Besides, work can wait. She needs to get home to Rachel.

"And you'll cover for me in case he shows up?"

Roger nods eagerly, more than ready to do whatever she asks. "Of course."

She immediately stands, collecting her phone and purse.

"Rog, I owe you one. Seriously, thank you." She looks him in the eye, wanting him to know that she is sincere, and he looks as though he could die of happiness at any moment.

"See you Monday," she quietly yells as she walks quickly towards the elevator. She presses the button nearly a dozen times before giving up and heading towards the stairwell.

_Fuck it, it's only 9 stories. _

She has to get home to Rachel.

* * *

But oddly enough, by the time she gets home, with a meal plan already in mind, she runs right into a delivery man, who is handing over two full bags through the threshold of her own apartment. She recognizes the man as their usual Thai delivery guy. She smiles politely at him as he passes and he gives her an equally polite "Hi Miss Fabray."

As she approaches the door, Rachel is just coming back to grab the second bag that must have been too heavy and fragile to carry on the first trip.

Rachel gasps in shock and jumps back at least a foot as she sees Quinn standing outside of the door as she stands just inside.

"Quinn, you scared me. You need to announce yourself!"

Rachel rests a hand over her heart to calm its rapid beating, but makes no move for the bag nor does she move to allow Quinn to enter.

"I know, I know…May I come in?" Quinn says with a smirk.

Rachel rolls her eyes and reaches down for the bag, only mildly amused. "It is _your _house, right?"

The smirk on Quinn's face is immediately replaced with an emotionless expression.

That stings.

She knows she deserves it, but it almost feels unfair. But Quinn says nothing about it. She doesn't want to start the evening off with a fight.

"And yet, here you are, ordering dinner?"

"Yeahhh, I wanted to have it here and already on the plates so it wouldn't look so thoughtless and last minute, but…I didn't expect you."

Quinn nods, her expression not changing, but on the inside she is positively giddy at the thought that Rachel wanted to prepare her dinner, just like she had wanted to do for Rachel. She wonders if Rachel's dinner is also an 'I missed you' meal.

"You weren't expecting me? Were you waiting for your _other_ fiancée to come over?" Quinn says playfully, in a much better mood as she considers Rachel's intentions.

After she thinks over her question though, she cringes inside realizing that the word 'fiancée' is a bit presumptuous giving their arguing and their subsequent week apart.

But Rachel doesn't seem to mind as she pours the noodles onto each plate. "Please, one is more than enough." She smirks over at Quinn and she imagines that she is looking at Rachel now the way Roger was looking at her earlier. As if she is the most fascinating specimen to ever live.

"I'm…I'm just going to get out of these clothes and I'll be back." Quinn says shyly as she heads to the bedroom.

She changes quickly into a pair of soccer pants from high school and a baggy sweatshirt. It's not particularly cold in the house, but it seems that every time she makes eye contact with Rachel, she gets chills, so as a preemptive measure, she wears it.

"Couch or table?" Asks Rachel when she sees Quinn walk back into the living room.

"Couch. Red or white?"

"Red. Can you get the chopsticks too?"

"Sure." They move past each other smoothly, each on their own mission before meeting back on the couch with all the necessary plates, drinks and utensils.

"How was your day?" Rachel starts.

Quinn finishes chewing before responding, "Good. Busy. Long."

They eat in silence for a few minutes before Quinn works up the courage to say more. "I missed you."

Rachel looks up abruptly, wide eyed, as if Quinn has said "I killed a man while you were gone."

Quinn holds her breath waiting for some sort of reply, but eventually gives up because Rachel says nothing. She just looks back down at her meal.

Quinn is drowning in the silence and the awkwardness of it all, so she asks a different, much safer question.

"How was your day? Your whole week, actually?"

Rachel immediately smiles and Quinn dies a little inside, realizing that Rachel obviously wasn't as miserable as she was.

"It was actually great! Very productive! Would you like to know what I did all by myself?"

Rachel is practically bouncing in her seat, and despite her best efforts, Quinn can't help but get excited at the smile on Rachel's face.

So she teasingly asks, "What did you do all by yourself?"

"I found an agent Quinn! An actual, real agent! And just like you said, I went with someone private as opposed to a company! I compared prices and you were right, his prices were much more affordable. I mean, granted he is a bit of a no name guy right now, but I'm hoping to change that. I met him on Tuesday for the first time and after hiring him, we met up again today. We went over his strategy for finding me roles and he really does have some big connections. I guess his boyfriend is a stylist or something who's mom is a big producer so he has all the inside info. But I really like him Quinn, he seems like he really knows what he's doing."

"That's wonderful Rach! I'm so glad you found someone, and so soon!"

"Exactly! I was worried that it would take months!"

"So…what do you just sit back and wait for him to call you with the goods?"

"Not quite," she laughs at Quinn's lack of understanding for how this all works. "Kurt says I actually have a lot to work on."

The smile on Quinn's face slowly morphs into a frown. "What do you mean? That sounds sketchy."

But Rachel shakes her head adamantly, "No, I thought so too because what could _I _possibly have to work on, but he said there are things like my wardrobe and presentation and all that stuff. He said he wants to take a few weeks to get my look in order and create a persona before I go for more auditions. And while I'm working with Blaine, that's his boyfriend," she interjects, "on my look, he's going to sift through scripts to find me something 'revolutionary', his words not mine."

Quinn nods her head, but she already doesn't like this Kurt fellow. The last thing she wants is someone coming along and taking away all of the things that make Rachel Berry as incredible and as unique as she is.

"Well…that's really great Rachel!" It takes everything in her not to use any of the terms of endearment she's become accustomed to. "I'm so happy for you."

Rachel looks up from her plate with squinted eyes. "You don't sound too happy…"

"No no! I am! It sounds like you had a…an amazing week." She tries to keep the hurt from her voice, realizing that while she was at home and in bed every night by 7 wishing that Rachel would call or text, Rachel was out having a wonderful time getting her life in order.

"Yeah…I did but…I still missed you."

Quinn keeps chewing like the words are no big deal, but inside her heart is having a small party.

And now that Rachel has admitted to missing her, the rest of her emotions just come pouring out. Which is exactly what she was afraid of when Quinn had first opened the door to talk of feelings.

"I missed you a lot actually. More than I thought I would. Or I could. I wanted to call or even just text, but every time I just kept reminding myself that you're busy, you have a full time job and it's demanding and I know how tired you are when you get home and I just didn't want to bother you. But I did miss you." There she said it. "Mainly just your stupid face." She adds, so that the atmosphere isn't so heavy.

Quinn laughs, just like she wanted.

"I'm glad to hear that. But you know…I'm never too busy or tired for you. I really wanted you to call actually. I had hoped you would."

Rachel smiles into her wine glass as she takes a sip, happy to hear that her phone calls would've been welcomed.

"Hey Rachel?"

"Hmm?" Rachel puts the glass down and licks her lips.

"I just…I just wanted to say thank you. For letting me fix this. For not just giving up on me."

Rachel smiles sweetly at Quinn's kind words.

"Of course. You know, you're not the only one who has things they can work on. And that's all I want, Quinn. I want to know what I can work on. How I can be better for you. That's why we did this whole thing anyway. So that we could be happy and have that love and trust and openness. I just feel like we got away from that and I just want to get back to that. But I'm just as invested in this as you are, so there's really no need to thank me."

Quinn doesn't know what to say so she just nods.

For as much as Rachel can be a high maintenance diva, she can also be quite sensible and sweet when the time calls for it.

"Okay, well, on that note…should we get started? I'm done with my food. Maybe I'll start?"

Quinn just nods and takes another bite of noodles, deathly afraid to know what all is on Rachel's list.

"Okay, well let's see…." Rachel lifts her phone from the table next to the couch. "Sorry, I would think of things mid-day and I needed a place to write it all before I forgot so I made a note…" She scrolls through for a few seconds before continuing.

"Okay. Well, first, I want to provide a sort of disclaimer. I don't want you to think that these are all issues that I've been keeping inside for months that I never told you about. A lot of them are things that came to me throughout the week. Okay?"

"Okay," Quinn says softly. The disclaimer does not help to ease her mind at all.

"Okay, well first, like I said the other day, I just don't feel like it's fair for either of us to own the relationship. It belongs to both of us, equally. But I feel like I haven't been contributing like an equal. And I believe that fault lies on both of us. Sometimes you don't let me contribute and sometimes I don't even offer. I imagine that it's hard to see us as equals, when I don't properly contribute, so from now on, I would like to pay half the rent. Half of everything actually. It's not fair that I tell you to treat us like a team, then proceed to let you do all the heavy lifting. So, that's something I would like to institute. And maybe there are certain bills that I'll pay every month and certain one's you'll pay, we'll go half on the rent and do every other month for the groceries. Is-is that okay?"

Quinn wants to say it's not necessary. She wants to tell Rachel that she doesn't mind taking care of the bills and 'heavy lifting', as she put it, but she knows better than to argue. So instead of asking how in the world she's going to pay for half of everything they do with a minimum wage job, she just agrees.

"Okay, that sounds good." Quinn nods and finishes off her plate before putting it on the table in exchange for her wine glass. "Next?"

She pulls her legs underneath her to sit with her body on the couch and prepares herself for the next item on Rachel's list.

Rachel smiles, clearly pleased with Quinn's lack of protest.

"Great…uhh, let's see. Okay, well, put frankly, I don't like being yelled at. The way you spoke to me the other day was rude and…borderline verbally abusive, if we're being honest. You made me feel like I was worthless, but worse than that, you became someone I could barely recognize. You actually-" she looks down at the empty wine glass in her hand, wishing she had something in the glass to distract her.

"I what, Rach?" Quinn prods softly.

"You scared me, Quinn. I honestly thought you might…" Rachel lets it end there. Surely Quinn can solve the rest of the puzzle.

And when she does, Rachel can almost hear Quinn's sharp intake of breath.

"Rachel…I-I would _never _hurt you. Never. I don't care how upset I am, I would die before I let something like that happen to you."

Deep down, Rachel knows Quinn is being honest. Quinn would never allow someone to harm a hair on her head, she had proven that time and time again in grade school. But that didn't mean that Quinn herself wouldn't harm her, even by accident, especially when she seemed so unlike herself.

"I just…I know you would never _mean_ to, and I know you'd feel terrible if you did, I just didn't know that person. That person was so angry, so furious that I didn't know what she was capable of."

Quinn hates herself right now. Her skin is crawling with such self-loathing that it almost makes her sick.

But as always, it is Rachel that saves her yet again from letting that loathing pull her deeper into the darkest recesses of her mind. "Look, my point is just that I don't appreciate being yelled at. It's rude, frightening, and it doesn't help the situation in any way. If we have issues, we should talk them through. There's nothing wrong with a heated argument, but I don't like yelling. Ever. Is that…is that something you can agree to, Quinn?"

Rachel is biting her lip and scrunching her eyebrows, as if she is afraid that Quinn will flip a table and hulk out on her. As if Quinn doesn't feel bad enough as is, when she moves forward to reach for Rachel's hands, Rachel instinctively pulls her hands out of reach. Realizing immediately what she's done, however, she puts them back within Quinn's reach, looking apologetic.

Quinn can barely look her in the eye, but she knows she must if she wants what she's about to say to be perfectly understood. She cautiously grabs Rachel's hands in a loose grip, much different than the death grip she had Rachel's wrists in the other day, and looks into her deep brown eyes.

"Rachel. I promise that that sort of behavior will never happen again. It was disrespectful in every possible way and I can guarantee you that it's not me. I-I realized after you left last weekend that none of that anger was about you. It was all me. All things that I had been keeping pent up. And I took all of that anger and frustration and…sadness and I put it onto you. But, it won't happen again. It's on my list."

Rachel looks relieved, but also confused.

"What's on your list?"

"Pillow talks."

Rachel smiles slightly, already liking the sound of whatever Quinn has in mind.

"And what are those?"

"I was thinking that maybe every night, right before bed, we can just…talk. About where we are. Together or separately. If we're happy. If we're sad. If we're somewhere in between. I just…I had so many thoughts swimming around in my head last week, and I probably-no I definitely should've talked to you about them instead of letting it all fester and build up. It's just that sometimes I feel like I'm burdening you with my problems. Sometimes I feel like I'll ruin your good moods with my daddy issues and other drama so I just don't say anything. But obviously that's not a good strategy. So I was thinking that pillow talks could be a dedicated time to discuss everything. Good or bad. Happy or sad. So, how does that sound?"

Rachel can hardly believe what she's hearing. She thought for sure that she would have to badger and force Quinn into creating a half decent list, but it seems as though that's not the case. Quinn has actually taken time to evaluate their situation and find ways to better it and Rachel could not be happier.

"Yes, yes. I love that idea. We will officially institute pillow talks into our nightly ritual. And hey…"

Rachel squeezes her hands firmly to get her attention.

"Please don't ever feel like you can't talk to me. I know that when we were just friends, we always had those topics that we just shied away from, but now we share everything. We have to. That's how these things work, okay? And as always, I don't mind sharing and shouldering your burdens. I _want _to. It makes me feel needed and useful when you share your struggles with me. So anytime you're feeling like you need to vent or talk things out, bedtime or not, you can come to me, okay?"

Quinn nods.

"Okay. And same for you."

They exchange soft smiles for a moment before Rachel continues.

"Alright," she takes a deep breath, "Well, I'm up by one still, so why don't you give me one more from your list?"

"Oh, okay, well um…" Quinn stands abruptly, "Let me just go grab my laptop."

Quinn disappears for a moment and Rachel takes the opportunity to go into the kitchen and retrieve the rest of the bottle of wine.

They both meet back on the couch a minute later and settle back in comfortably.

"More?"

"No thank you." Quinn is distracted as she sifts through her files and opens up her own list.

"Okay, so um, next up. And for my own little disclaimer, these are things I just kind of realized…I didn't know I needed this stuff really either, you know? So just…don't be mad."

Quinn has never felt so ineloquent, but Rachel's gentle smile and nod tells her that she understands what she is trying to say.

"Right, okay so…what you said the other day, I think you were right. I don't think I realized when we first moved in together what it meant to really _live_ together. Make no mistake, I absolutely love coming home to you. It's the best part of my day. I just…I think that sometimes I need alone time."

Rachel's face falls immediately and so Quinn scoots closer to her and attempts to comfort her by placing a hand on her knee and rubbing gently.

"Honestly, it's not because of you! I promise! I just realized that I need time to be in my own head. I know you're not like that. I know you love to talk and you love to be together and I do too, but I also need some 'me' time. It's just who I am. And I just…I didn't realize that I needed to ask you for it because I'm used getting it when you're not around. But now it's like, you're either always around or I'm at work. I just need some time to be…alone. Is that…okay?"

Rachel bites her lip and looks as though she might cry.

"That's fine. I understand."

But it's so obvious to Quinn that it isn't exactly fine. Rachel's feelings are hurt.

"Rachel, you know I love you. I love having you around and I swear it has nothing to do with you. I mean, don't you ever just want to be left alone sometimes?"

Yes, she often does. When she is practicing her lines, when she is upset, when she is tired and cranky, she wants to be alone. And yet, even in those moments, when all she wants to do is come home, crawl in bed, and shut out the rest of the world, she still finds herself wanting Quinn cuddled up beside her.

Though she really had never thought of it much before, she has always felt like Quinn isn't the rest of the world. Quinn is like a world of her _own_. Quinn has always been granted entrance to a place within Rachel where no one else is allowed to go. Quinn has always been entitled to a Rachel no one else gets to see.

So no, she can't really understand Quinn wanting to be completely alone but she can respect it.

"It's really quite alright Quinn. I understand you needing your space. So what do you suggest?"

Quinn is relieved when Rachel agrees even though she knows that Rachel is only doing this for her. Rachel is a social person, always craving the company of others, and Quinn wants so badly to be the same way, but this last week has proven to her that she cannot always be that person.

She needs time to herself.

"I was thinking maybe we could have…and I'm sorry this sounds so lame, but I didn't know how else to word it, but maybe we could have quiet hours. And a huge part of the reason is because I am writing that book we talked about. And I really am sorry for not telling you sooner. I know I had originally said that I just wanted to work at K&amp;D, but one day I just…I just needed to take everything inside of me and put it somewhere. And it was so heavy, it was so…dark, that I couldn't possibly put it on you. So I put it on paper. And I have just come to realize that after I get done writing, I'm not always in a good place. And…I just don't want you to have to deal with me when I'm like that."

Rachel scoots closer to Quinn because quite frankly, she is worried. Everything Quinn is saying sounds so very unlike her.

Heavy? Dark? Quinn hasn't been dark since they both experimented with a gothic look in 7th grade that their parents had quickly shut down.

And even then, Quinn wasn't 'dark' per se, not on the inside. She just looked the part on the outside.

"I…I don't think I understand. What exactly is your book about? It sounds…a little scary?"

She hopes that's not insulting to Quinn.

Quinn bites her lip, trying to figure out how to describe her work so far.

"It's…it's not all bad. But it's about my life. It's about finding myself in a world that already knows who I am. I've always felt like other people were always telling me who I am, you know? They write about me in Forbes and Business Week, about my accomplishments and my goals of taking over my dad's company, like they know me. Like they know exactly what I want out of my life. They talk about how and why I left my dad's company to work with someone else like they know, but they don't. And I just…I want them to know. I want them to know exactly who I am. And in the process, I'm just unpacking all of this stuff, all these memories, that I had tucked away in these neat little compartments and I just….it's a lot." She takes a deep breath as if preparing to say something else, but she never does.

So they sit there for a moment. Quinn waiting on Rachel to say something. Rachel not knowing what to say.

"Okay…so quiet hours. I can do that. Do you have days that work best for you?"

"I was thinking Tuesday's and Thursday's. Maybe from 7-10ish. That way we can still have dinner together. And I'll let you know if I decide not to write those days, but I won't add extra days."

Rachel nods.

"And…so should I not be home? And will we still have our pillow talks on those nights?"

These are two things Quinn hasn't considered. She contemplates it momentarily.

"Yeah, I think so. I mean, I know it might seem awful now, but I really do think that you'll find you actually enjoy these nights. You can be home if you want or go out with Britt or maybe your cast friends when you make them. And then there's no obligation for you to be here or anything you know. It's like a free night that you can spend without feeling like you have to be home to keep me company or anything. But you are welcome to be here, of course, anytime you want. I just won't be much company."

Quinn is probably right. When she has more friends than just the dancer and her boyfriend, Rachel may want to go out. She doesn't necessarily like the club scene, but she might want to participate in a competitive game night among her cast mates or go see a movie with a friend and it's almost nice to know that she isn't expected to be home, nor does she have to feel bad about being out on Tuesdays and Thursdays.

She doesn't quite get it, but it can still be good for them.

"Well, okay then. Absence makes the heart grow fonder anyway. I'll just be even happier to see you when I finally get home."

That lights up Quinn's heart and it reflects on her face as she smiles broadly at Rachel.

"Me too."

She wants to lean over and kiss Rachel, but she knows she shouldn't. Though Rachel is being incredibly understanding and forgiving, she knows she's still very much in the dog house.

"Alright, back to me then?"

Quinn nods and scoots back just a bit, relaxing her back onto the couch, but her hand holds firm to Rachel's, never letting go.

* * *

"Alright, finally, my last one," Rachel sounds exhausted. As much as she loves to talk, she is all talked out. Especially considering the heaviness of the conversation.

Another hour has passed and each girl has submitted an additional 3 or 4 requests, taking the time to discuss each one, which is wonderful and she really thinks it's going to open up the possibilities for their relationship, but all she wants to do is curl up and fall asleep in Quinn's arms.

"Oh, perfect. I just have my last two left. So, I'll go again to make it even."

Rachel nods sleepily. It's not even that late, probably not even 8 p.m. but this couch is so damn comfortable and she has done so much today and Quinn's hand is warm and all of those things put together make sleep more appealing than ever.

"Well, last week, you got on me the same night as our fight for not calling or texting to say I was going to be late. But in the same way, you left and I didn't even know where you were or where you were supposed to be or if you were safe. And that's not okay Rach. Not only do I need to know that you're alright, but you can't just run the moment things get crazy. I need you to stay. Even if it hurts, even if one of us just sleeps on the couch, we need to stay and give each other the opportunity to work things out in the morning, at least. Okay? Promise me you'll stay."

Rachel nods. This time partly because she is too tired to talk excessively, but also because she is embarrassed. Quinn is right. She had yelled at Quinn for not keeping her updated on her whereabouts then turned around and kept her completely in the dark. She hadn't been fair and now that it was brought to her attention, she wouldn't leave again. Quinn was also right when she said that they needed to stay and talk things out, even if it's in the morning. She agrees that it's okay to go to bed angry as long as you wake up ready to make up.

_I need to trademark that. It belongs on a calendar. _

Rachel smiles to herself and Quinn smiles back.

"Your turn." She says softly.

"Well, this last one was a bit of a self-discovery actually. I'm not sure if you've ever done this, it may be just me. But I realized I have a tendency to bring up the past more than I should. Your mistakes, shortcomings, all of that. I have the tendency to reference things sometimes that were in the past, so I thought perhaps we would both benefit from a 24 rule."

"Hmm, I'm listening." Quinn mumbles, curious as to where Rachel is going with this.

"You get 24 hours to be mad. To bring it up and say whatever you need to say on the matter, within reason."

"And without any yelling." Quinn interjects with a sly smile.

"Of course," Rachel says returning the glance. "And once that 24 hours is up, no more being angry and spiteful. By the 24th hour, we need a solution of what we're going to do to fix or better the situation. That way, we both get time to stew in our anger and be heard but we're also forced to confront the issue head on."

"So you get to stew? Since that's what _you _do. Because I don't hold grudges."

Rachel just shrugs but doesn't argue.

"Ehh, I mean, in theory it seems like a good idea Rach, but I just feel like if it's something really serious it may take more than 24 hours to get over it."

Rachel considers this. "Yes, I am certainly compelled to agree with you Quinn, but I'm not suggesting we have to be over it and happy again by the end of a day. I'm just suggesting that any anger about the situation has to be resolved. Let's say for example you cheated on me-"

"What?! I would _never _cheat on y-"

"I know, of course you wouldn't! That would be the dumbest decision you ever made. But let's say for example you did. I get 24 hours to be angry with you. I get to make snide remarks and when you say "I love you", I get to say condescending things like "Really?! Because it was hard to tell when you were performing fellatio on that gentleman in our bed!" and there's nothing you can say. But once that 24 hour mark hits, we need to have had a discussion about how we're going to handle this. Are we going to stay together? Are we going to try to move past it? If so, what is that going to take on both our parts? The anger isn't going to solve anything so this is a great way to make sure it doesn't last too long. Because I just know how I can be and I don't want living with me to become this nightmare because I ruminate about everything and constantly bring it up long after the fact."

Though Quinn was a little confused by this rule at first, it makes perfect sense now. Because by definition, that is Rachel. She is a condescending, grudge holding, I'm never going to forget this sort of person. She brings up small indiscretions of the past often, though, Quinn has never really been too bothered by it. But she imagines that having to live with it for the rest of her life may prove difficult.

Quinn recalls a time before they moved in together, or had even thought up a contract, when she had cooked and just hadn't felt like cleaning up the kitchen. She had asked Rachel to handle the dishes on her own for the evening, even though they always cleaned up together. Rachel had agreed, even going so far as to tell Quinn to lay back on the couch and relax. But then for two weeks after that, after each dinner that Rachel spent at her house, she would ask "Am I own again for the dishes tonight?" As if to say that Quinn _never _helped her with the dishes even though it was once in a blue moon that Quinn had asked Rachel for favors.

But that is who she is marrying. So she agrees to this 24 hour rule easily because it is not only to her greatest advantage, but it really could help them to resolve issues more efficiently.

"I love it. Thank you for suggesting it."

Rachel nods again as her eyes close slowly. "What's your last one honey?"

Quinn is looking down at her laptop to review the last one when she says it. Her eyes shoot up to see if Rachel looks regretful or apologetic, but her eyes are closed and her face is giving nothing away.

But Quinn's face looks like a kid on Christmas. She has missed the sound of Rachel calling her sweet names and so she takes a second to bask in the moment before speaking.

"Well, I was thinking. The most important thing you said to me last week was that you don't feel like we have anything that's ours. You feel like a guest here and honestly that's all my fault. I am really protective of this place and of my space, and maybe if we had dated for years I would be better at this, but I'm not. But I want to be, I do Rach."

Unbeknownst to Quinn, she is virtually talking to herself. Rachel can hear her but she is falling asleep fast. But she isn't too deep in it to hear what she says next.

"So I want to start looking for a new place for us. I want us to both decide what area and what we want to pay for rent and I want both of our names to be on the lease. I want to pick out furniture and décor together. And of course, I know I have the right to veto furniture suggestions but I first want us to go together to IKEA and try everything. I want to sit on every single couch and see if we can find something that we both agree best fits us. I want you to feel comfortable and I do understand why you don't here. So when we do find a place, I'll pay to get out of this lease early and we can move. Hopefully the weather will be better too."

Rachel's eyes are wide open now. She is staring at Quinn as if she is the second coming of Christ.

"Are you being facetious Quinn? Because now is not the time for jokes!"

Rachel's voice is so serious and so hopeful that even if Quinn was kidding, she would have to follow through now because Rachel would be crushed if she didn't.

"I'm completely serious. I want to move out of here and really move in with you. I want to start from scratch and do it like all the other couples do."

"But Quinn…you have so much stuff, I feel like it's going to be so expensive finding a place for it all. I feel like this one bedroom is such a steal because it's fairly spacious and still affordable."

"Yeahhh, well, I think I'm going to sift through my stuff and get rid of things I don't use or wear. Which is only fair anyway because you had to do that when you moved in here. But this place is 70% mine, 30% yours and like you said, we're equals. Everything from our house right down to our finances should belong to both of us. Which is way I made an appointment tomorrow with Bank of America. Originally, I was just going to add your name to my bank account. But then, I figured that's exactly what you _wouldn't _want." They both share a laugh. "I was thinking we could close our old accounts and start a new checking and savings account together. So that my money isn't mine and yours isn't yours. It's ours," Quinn finishes softly.

Rachel didn't think it was possible to love someone so much. To be so completely and ridiculous smitten with someone the way she is with Quinn. Quinn is everything she has ever dreamed of and all the things she forgot to mention wanting rolled into one beautiful woman.

She wants to respond with an eloquent, borderline poetic speech but she is at a loss for words.

She does, however, manage to sit up on her knees and scoot closer to Quinn, almost in her lap.

Quinn instinctively puts her hands on her waist, both to steady her and to focus on something besides her increased heartrate.

She hasn't been this close to Rachel since their kiss on Monday. Their ragged, heated kiss that in the worst moment created a fire in Quinn's core that took two cold showers to quell.

Rachel leans in, lazy and tired, and nearly falls into Quinn's neck.

They remain like this for a moment.

Rachel with her arms wrapped around Quinn's neck, hot air from her lips hitting the shell of Quinn's ear.

And Quinn, with her hands slightly underneath Rachel's shirt, struggling to breathe. Struggling to let Rachel make the first move despite the fact that she wants nothing more than to lean in and take the initiative.

But as if answering unspoken prayers, Rachel places a kiss just under Quinn's ear, a highly sensitive spot.

Quinn suppresses a moan, but grips Rachel's waist a little tighter.

"It's annoying how much I love you." Rachel says as she pulls away, just enough to look Quinn in the eyes. So that she knows just how much Rachel means it.

Quinn laughs openly, remembering when she said that very thing to Rachel just a week prior.

"And it's disgusting how lucky I feel to be loved by you." Quinn makes a face to emphasize just how repulsed she is and Rachel laughs before changing positions and cuddling up closer to Quinn. She wraps her arm around Quinn's waist and places her head gently on Quinn's shoulder.

Quinn puts her arm around Rachel's shoulder and turns her head to breathe in the scent of Rachel's hair.

Apples.

_Wait…her shampoo is almond oil._

"Why do you smell like my shampoo?" Quinn whispers.

Rachel holds her a little tighter before she responds, "I really _really _missed you."

Quinn smiles involuntarily and kisses Rachel's hair, inhaling once more. She loves the idea of Rachel using her shampoo and it makes her think that sharing everything won't be so bad after all.

"I missed you too. I'm so glad you're home."

Rachel's grip slackens.

"Quinn….."

"Yes?" She asks cautiously.

"I…" she sighs. "I can't just come back..."

Quinn sits up, forcing Rachel to do the same.

"What do you mean? Rachel, I made my list, just like you wanted. We talked everything out, just like you wanted. Why _wouldn't_ you come home?"

Quinn is becoming frantic and so Rachel places a hand on her knee in an attempt to calm her.

"Quinn…I told you this isn't my home. It's yours. And honestly, that's okay! I think this space is good for us anyway."

"What? No, I don't need space Rachel. I need you to come home. I miss you. You said you missed me…"

"And I do Quinn." She reaches for her hand, but it's Quinn's turn to pull away.

"Quinn, please understand that I miss you and I want nothing more to be sleeping in the same bed again. But we need this. We need some time apart."

"Are you...are you punishing me for what I said Rachel? Because I thought this week was more than enough of a punishment. I learned my lesson. It won't happen again."

"No, Quinn! It's not meant to be a punishment. It's meant to be a last sort of hoorah before we live together _for the rest of our lives. _I want you to enjoy this time to yourself! Enjoy the peace and quiet and everything you love about living alone because hopefully you'll never have to do it again. I'm going to be really focused on getting myself together as well, so I think we'll both be better for taking some time apart."

"Time apart is what happens right before a break up…" she says softly.

But Rachel shakes her head adamantly, "We are most certainly _not _breaking up. We're taking time to work on ourselves and whatever this," she gestures between them, "is. Okay?"

"Okay." And despite any worries Quinn may have about this time apart, she believes Rachel.

This isn't punishment and this isn't permanent.

"As soon as we find a place, we'll be together, right back on track. I promise."

To make certain that Quinn knows how serious she is, she seals her promise with a kiss.

She places her hands on either side of Quinn's face and leans forward. It's tentative at first, both girls afraid of doing too much, but upon realizing that she may not get the opportunity to do this again for a while depending on how things progress, Quinn is the first to let her tongue graze Rachel's bottom lip, asking for entrance.

Rachel is quick to comply and almost immediately their kisses deepen. She moves her hands down from Quinn's face to her chest, just above her breasts. Quinn only encircles her arms around Rachel's waist, holding on for dear life.

The kiss is not sexy, per se. It is not laced with sexual tension, but it is certainly passionate. Both girls taking advantage of a moment that may be hard to come by again soon.

Only a few minutes later, when Quinn finally needs air does she begin to pull away, but not before placing one more single kiss on Rachel's lips.

It still astounds her how much she enjoys this. And it almost upsets her to know that Rachel has been in her life for 21 years and only now is she discovering that kissing her is like winning the lottery over and over and over again.

"Can I ask you for one more thing?" Rachel whispers onto Quinn's lips.

Quinn finally opens her eyes as her breathing slows and looks intently at Rachel.

"Baby, you can have anything you want as long as you never stop kissing me like that."

Rachel smiles widely and gives Quinn one more peck before responding.

"Can I stay? Just…just for tonight?"

Quinn doesn't want to look too eager so she simply nods, but inside her organs are doing numerous happy dances.

"Always."

"Good because I need to actually get good night's sleep. I have to meet Kurt and his boyfriend in the morning for coffee. I'm getting a make-over tomorrow."

Quinn wants to say something. She wants to tell Rachel that she doesn't need a makeover. That she doesn't need to change because she's perfect and flawless just the way she is now. That she loves Rachel all the same. But Rachel lays her head back down on her shoulder and wraps her arms back around Quinn's waist. And as Quinn breathes in more of her own scent on Rachel, she has no urge to speak and ruin the good thing between them.

In fact, she can only think of one thing.

_Tomorrow morning while she's getting coffee, I'm need to find a new place. _

Because as Rachel begins to snore lightly, she realizes this isn't something she wants to live without much longer.

**######**

**Umm, I think it's safe to say that this got out of hand with over 8,000 words. I thought about making it two chapters, but honestly, there didn't seem to be a good breaking point, so here it is in all of its glory. A few things to note about this chapter, I am actually educated in mediating and managing conflict, so a lot of these strategies they're implementing are real-life tactics for overcoming communication barriers (pillow talks) and maintaining your need to be alone in the midst of togetherness (quiet hours). I actually use them in my own relationship and you would be surprised how much nicer it is when you know that this is your set time to discuss problems or issues and this is your set time to be apart. Anyway, I just wanted to say that so you don't think I made all of this stuff up. Another note is that I realized upon proof reading that they are eating Thai AGAIN. I swear next time, I'll let them have some pizza or something. Haha :) **

**As always, thank you for following, favoriting, and reviewing! You guys are blowing me away with your awesome comments and I'll respond to last chapter and this chapter soon! Also, as one guest did bring this up, I went back and combined chapters 1 and 2 since they belonged together anyway. Meaning that for a few days there were only 11 chapters and now this is officially chapter 12. So don't be alarmed, I haven't deleted anything! Lastly, I know this was a bit heavy, but it's all uphill from here! **

**Okay okay, I'm done! If you liked it, please let me know! If not…let me know. ;) **

**Until next time. **

**Title by Taylor Swift **


	13. World In Front Of Me

She has been awake since 5 and out of bed since 6.

Immediately upon opening her eyes, she wanted to roll out of bed and get started on apartment hunting. But then she made the mistake of rolling over and found a sleeping Rachel and all plans of leaving bed were forgotten.

Her hair could be an exact replica of a bird's nest, she is snoring lightly, and as usual, there is a small trail of saliva drooling from her mouth.

Quinn wonders how Rachel at her worst is still so beautiful. Still so breathtaking.

She scoots closer and wraps her up tighter in her arms, which Rachel does not reject. In fact, she only scoots back further into Quinn's grasp so that they are pressed completely together, Quinn's front to Rachel's back.

Quinn can recall a time in a high school when boys would try to hold her like this. She can also remember a time when she would quickly put them back in their place and let them know that she in no way wanted their junk pressed against her. She can remember hating the feeling of being in their arms because their bodies were always so massive. Their hold always seemed possessive, never comforting, when they wrapped around her.

But here and now, holding Rachel the same way they held her, is _so_ different.

She can't exactly speak for Rachel, but to her they just fit together. Rachel fits perfectly in her arms. They don't have to try, or move around until they find a comfortable position. They always just seem to fall into it effortlessly.

Which makes it so much harder to leave Rachel when the clock strikes 6 and she knows she can no longer lay here. She is getting restless and she has so much to do.

Today, she is making it her mission to check out a few suitable, affordable apartments for her and Rachel.

She isn't exactly sure where to start looking, but she turns on her tablet prepared to start at square one, as she blows on her green tea to get her day started.

She needs to have a few options available by 9 a.m., the time that Rachel is going to meet Kurt and his boyfriend so that while Rachel is getting coffee, she can go scope out the places.

She knows that Rachel wants to be all about togetherness, but she herself is about efficiency. And she already knows that Rachel is picky. She also knows that if the places that sound good on paper aren't as impressive in person, Rachel will complain. Openly. To the landlord. Rachel will stage a storm out. Rachel will write a letter to whomever owns the building space and she will see to it that something is done about its awful quality, while also guaranteeing that no one will want to let them sign a lease by the time Rachel is done.

So she will find 3 or 4 places now to check out while Rachel gets coffee, just to make sure that they are as lovely as they claim to be.

It takes her a bit of time to sort through all available apartments in their area. She types in all of the criteria that she knows she and Rachel would want, but with so many specifications, it only yields 3 results. She figures that will do for now. She probably only has time for 3 anyway.

By the time she writes down their addresses and maps them all out to figure out where to start and end, it's just after 7.

She has just enough time to surprise Rachel with breakfast.

Breakfast in bed, even.

_I'm going to make her wish she had never suggested time apart. _

Quinn works quickly to prepare a breakfast of star shaped pancakes and eggs, Rachel's favorite, and an acai bowl for herself.

7:28.

Rachel's alarm is set to go off at 7:30, so Quinn quickly puts everything on a serving tray and as quickly as she can walk with a glass of orange juice, she hurries to the room to beat the clock. She manages to turn the clock alarm off just before it ticks 7:30.

"Raaaachel." She calls quietly, easing Rachel out of her dreams and into reality.

"Rachel, baby. Wake up." Her voice is a little louder and Rachel finally begins to stir.

Rachel awakens but doesn't even bother opening her eyes. She turns and reaches out to Quinn's side of the bed but is immediately disappointed to find no one. She thought for sure that she had heard Quinn's voice, but she supposes it was all in her head.

"Good morning Rachel."

Rachel jumps a little and turns towards the voice, realizing that she had heard Quinn's voice after all.

She is crouched down by Rachel's side of the bed, smiling at how cute sleepy, scared Rachel is.

"Quuiiin, you need to—"

"Yeah, announce myself, I know." Quinn laughs lowly.

"Yes, and I stand by that." Rachel cuddles deeper into the sheets and closes her eyes.

"What time is it? Come back to bed."

Quinn can't help herself. She reaches her arm out to move the hair gently away from Rachel's face.

"I would love nothing more but it's time to get up. It's 7:30."

Rachel groans. "Nooo, I set my alarm and it has yet to go off. There's still tiiiime."

Quinn laughs again, now running her fingers across Rachel's cheek, soothing her almost back to sleep.

"Tell you what, you can stay in bed just a little longer, okay?"

"But what about you? Are you going to join me?" She whines as Quinn stands back up to grab the tray of food from the top of the dresser.

"I am. I made you breakfast and now we're going to enjoy it in bed."

Rachel's jaw drops as she sits up a little and what she sees confirms that Quinn is in fact telling the truth.

"You…made me breakfast?" She sounds in awe.

"I did." Quinn is beaming, knowing that she has just earned some major points.

She puts the food down gently on the bed after Rachel takes her glass of orange juice and puts it on her night stand.

"I've never been treated to breakfast _in bed. _What's the occasion?" She asks excitedly as Quinn hands her a warm plate of pancakes and eggs. Well, egg substitute.

"No occasion. Just because it's Saturday and you're my best friend and I love you."

It's Rachel's turn to beam at Quinn's words.

"Well thank you baby." She leans forward with her lips pursed and Quinn eagerly leans in to give her a peck. When Rachel tries to deepen it, Quinn pulls away almost immediately.

"Ah ah, no way. Brush your teeth first. I love you despite a lot of things, but morning breath is not one of them."

They both share a laugh, but instead of going to grab her tooth brush, Rachel begins to dig into her breakfast.

"Fine. Then no kiss for you."

Quinn shrugs, "I think I'll live."

"Heyyy, if you're going to make me breakfast in bed, you have to be nice and sweet to me," Rachel pouts.

"Me making you breakfast _was_ me being nice and sweet. Now shut up and _eat._"

Rachel says nothing further. She just shakes her head and begins pulling apart her pancake and dipping it in syrup, the smile never leaving her face.

"So," she says after taking a few minutes to chew, "what's on your schedule today?"

"Well, I was thinking of walking with you to the coffee shop. I would like to meet Kurt, if that's okay."

"Oh yes! That would be great! Then we could test out our relationship on him! You know, he's the first person we'll be telling that we haven't known for an extended period of time. So I believe he'll make an excellent test subject."

That's not at all what Quinn had in mind. She just wanted to scope the guy out, see what his deal was. She has a feeling she won't like him and wants to turn that feeling into fact. But she says none of that to Rachel.

"Test subject?"

"Yes, Quinn, we need to test the authenticity of our relationship from an outside perspective. Someone who is meeting us for the very first time has to believe that we really do belong together."

Quinn supposes Rachel is right. She hadn't quite thought of it before, but they really haven't told anybody that they haven't known for an extended part of their lives. So this will be the perfect time to test whether or not their relationship is believable from someone meeting them for the very first time.

Of course, Quinn knows how easy this will be. She already feels like she belongs with Rachel. So it shouldn't be difficult to convince a random stranger of this.

"Okay, that's a great idea."

Rachel nods her appreciation of Quinn's approval.

"Anything else on your plate?"

"Umm, I would love to head to the farmer's market. Grab a few items for recipes that just aren't as fresh in stores."

Good. Not a complete lie. That is something she would love to do. She just won't have the time.

"Ooooh, that sounds like fun! Okay, well, it looks like we both have a big day ahead of us!"

Quinn nods silently, not willing to lie and evade any more than she has to.

"I'm meeting Kurt at the cafe 9, so I should probably get in the shower."

Quinn nods as she prepares to take Rachel's now empty plate. But Rachel grabs her wrist gently to stop her.

"Let me get this. You cooked."

Quinn is almost a little hesitant to say yes, knowing what happens when she doesn't help Rachel clean, but she lets go of the plate anyway.

"Thank…you."

Rachel giggles at her hesitance. "You're welcome. And thank _you _for making me breakfast." Rachel leans in to give her a kiss on the cheek, which causes her to flush a bit.

"Anytime." She mumbles back.

Quinn is lying in bed for a moment contemplating what she's going to wear for the day, when Rachel traipses back into the room.

"Did you…did you still want to go to the bank today? After my coffee thing?" Rachel asks quietly, clearly unsure of herself.

"Oh, yeah. Absolutely! I'll make sure to grab the proof of residence and whatever else we'll need."

"Okay, great!" Rachel smiles widely, even though Quinn can't see it because Rachel is reaching into her drawer to grab clothes for her shower.

Quinn smiles at Rachel's excitement and gets up to head towards the closet.

She decides on a sundress and a pair of heels. She doesn't know this Kurt fellow, and she isn't sure if she wants to, but she doesn't want to look like a mess when she meets him for the first time. Much like her father, she is a firm believer in first impressions.

When they are both dressed and ready for the day, Quinn grabs her purse and Rachel's hand and they walked the three blocks to the coffee shop.

* * *

Based on Rachel's apt description, she spots him from at least 50 feet away. He's wearing a pair of impossibly tight red jeans and a tucked in deep blue button up shirt. Between those two colors and his skin tone, he reminds Quinn of the American flag.

He's sitting next to a man that looks slightly more tan, but is certainly dressed just as flamboyantly, with tight black jeans that leave his ankles exposed. His black Oxfords shine brightly, as if newly polished, which instantly gains Quinn's respect. His pressed white shirt is also tucked in, and he has a blue bowtie to match Kurt's shirt perfectly. What should be a tacky combination between the two of them is actually quite impressive and Quinn is forced to admit that they are quite a stylish couple.

"Hey Rach. Do you think those two guys right there are gay?"

Rachel laughs loudly and squeezes Quinn's hand.

"You know what? I'm going to go out on a huge limb and say yes. Kurt is the one in the red pants. And Blaine is the one with the bowtie. Kurt's shown me like a hundred pictures and I swear he has a bowtie on in every single one!"

They laugh lightly, before steeling their faces with wide smiles and preparing to meet the two men.

Kurt is the first to see them of the two, immediately standing and greeting them.

"Rachel Berry!"

Rachel lets go of Quinn's hand to hug Kurt as Quinn and Blaine stand awkwardly just watching.

"Kurt! Hi!" They hug tightly for a few moments before Kurt pulls back and then looks over at Quinn.

"Oh my goodness, I did not know she was going to be so beautiful!" Kurt nearly yells.

Rachel beams at the compliment, but Quinn is surprised at how offended she is.

Obviously she knows she's beautiful. Her parents always introduced her as their "beautiful little girl". The other girls in her grade had often commented on how jealous they were of her looks, especially behind her back. And of course, it seemed like every man she had ever come across had complimented her on her absolute and indescribable beauty.

But in this moment, Kurt's statement sounds downright rude. It sounds like "Based on your appearance, Rachel, I expected your fiancée to be less attractive."

But any negative feelings she harbors, she tucks them away and holds the smile on her face. She waits for Kurt to extend his hand to her, refusing to initiate the handshake, and when he does she slowly lifts her hand and shakes his firmly. Probably too firmly, actually, because she can see the almost imperceptible wince on his face as she squeezes.

"Hmm." She says passively, not caring how pretty he finds her to be. "Quinn Fabray." She is very short with him and out of the corner of her eye, she can see Rachel frown slightly.

She's being rude and surely Rachel will lecture her about it later, but right now, she doesn't care. She does not like Kurt Hummel one bit.

He seems to notice this and tries to flatter her.

"You are positively beautiful! This hair!" He tries to reach out and touch her hair, but she is not having that and skillfully steps away from his eager hands and closer to Rachel.

"Thank you." She nods curtly at him before turning fully towards Rachel and stepping back into her personal space.

"Can I get you coffee?" she asks quietly, intimately.

Rachel's frown is immediately replaced with a soft smile as Quinn turns all of her attention towards her.

"Yeah, I'll have my usual soy latte, please?"

"It's hot out, you sure you don't want it iced?"

"No, you know I don't believe in cold coffee. Hot please."

Quinn smiles widely at her antics and prepares to turn away when Rachel takes the initiative to ask either Kurt or Blaine if they want something.

Blaine says 'no thank you' kindly, but Kurt thinks for a moment before deciding. "Yes, actually, could you just get me a bottle of water? I am parched."

Quinn's upper lip moves upward, as if she is trying to snarl in distaste. She wants to comment on how this isn't Downton Abbey so there's really no need to talk that way. But when Rachel places her hand on her waist, she just nods politely.

"Anything else?" she asks Rachel. "You want a bran muffin?"

Rachel thinks for a moment before deciding that she is fine without the muffin.

"But thank you, baby."

Quinn nods, and trails her hand down the arm that's attached to her hip. When their hands finally meet, Quinn squeezes it affectionately and whispers, "Be right back."

Rachel watches her go for a moment before sitting down at the table the men have chosen. It's far too warm to be sitting outside and normally Rachel would be eager to mention such a thing, but first impressions are everything and she needs Kurt to like her, to _not _regret working with her. So all of her diva-like tendencies must stay hidden a little longer, until they've developed a strong working relationship.

So for now she just sits and nods at whatever Kurt is saying, until he finally says something that garners her attention.

"Umm, so she's certainly more beautiful than anything I could've imagined, but I…she seems a little rude."

Blaine immediately leans forward and corrects him. "No no, she wasn't rude Kurt. Just a bit standoffish, maybe," he shrugs, "I'm sure once we know each other a little better, we'll all be great friends!"

He tries to remain positive, so Kurt smiles and attempts to reflect that positivity but Rachel knows Quinn well enough to know that it's a lost cause.

There is hope for Blaine, but Quinn does not like Kurt and now she probably never will. No matter how wonderful and sweet he proves to be, no matter how successful he makes her, Quinn will never consider him a friend because to Quinn Fabray, first impressions are the most powerful. Her first impression of you will build either a long lasting friendship or a timeless dislike.

_Which is probably why she has exactly two friends, _Rachel thinks to herself before deciding to speak up for her fiancée.

"Honestly, she's always like that. She's a bit of a tough nut to crack, but…" She stares at Quinn ordering their coffee through the glass window and can't help but smile. She appears to be speaking intensely and Rachel knows that she's trying to explain to the barista how Rachel likes her soy latte so that hopefully it will only take one attempt to make it properly.

"But I kind of love her."

Blaine coos at her and Kurt just smiles politely and she already knows that for as long as he's in her life, those two will be at odds. She only hopes that it doesn't affect her work with Kurt because the last thing she wants to have to do is find another agent.

The table is awkwardly silent for a few minutes as Kurt and Blaine each take sips of their iced drinks and stare at the passers-by.

Until finally, Quinn returns with Rachel's latte, Kurt's water, her own iced tea, and a bran muffin.

"You took too long thinking…so I figured somewhere deep down, you wanted the muffin."

Quinn kisses her cheek softly before sitting next to Rachel, who is smiling uncontrollably.

"Thank you."

"You're welcome."

Kurt must get tired of them staring at each other because he eventually cuts in, rather loudly.

"Well, it's pretty warm out so we should probably get right to it."

He and Blaine both lean forward again, prepared to get down to business so Rachel pulls a pen from her pocket as well as a small note pad.

"Yes! Now, this whole meeting was about my look and everything right? So tell me everything I need to know."

"For starters," Kurt leans over and snatches the items out of her hand. "No more of that. No more pulling things out of your pocket. Carry a damn purse Rachel."

Rachel nods seriously, jotting this down mentally.

Quinn smirks from her chair because that's what she's been telling Rachel for years. But Rachel is afraid that if she carries a purse, it will be the equivalent of a neon sign flashing the words 'MUG ME'.

But Kurt's tone is all seriousness and no-nonsense so Rachel seems to take it to heart.

"But don't worry," Blaine cuts in, "We'll get you so many beautiful bags that you'll be dying to carry them out and show them off."

Rachel nods and takes a sip of her latte. It's much too hot, so she slides it over to Quinn, who removes the top and blows on it gently.

This is a routine they have mastered since they were old enough to drink coffee. Rachel gets a hot beverage, realizes it's far too hot for her mouth, and Quinn cools it down just enough so that Rachel can consume it. After years of practice, she knows just the temperature Rachel is comfortable with and blows and sips it lightly until the drink matches that temperature.

Quinn blows lightly and looks back up to follow the conversation.

"—cannot wait to see you in it! You're going to look simply divine! And we're definitely going to have to get you out of these frumpy shirts, they are not flattering _at all_."

"I-I like this shirt."

"Hey, watch it."

Rachel and Quinn both speak at the same time. But Rachel's voice is soft and meek while Quinn's is commanding in an almost scary way. Rachel reaches out and places her hand on Quinn's thigh to calm her and Quinn immediately reaches down to lace their fingers together.

Kurt immediately backtracks, "No, well, of course they're very nice shirts, but not quite Broadway bound material!"

"What Kurt means is that you have to dress for the job you want! He means no offense."

Quinn scoffs, but Rachel nods understandingly. She gets it. How often does she see celebrities walking around in cat sweaters and plaid skirts with knee highs?

"That makes sense. So, do I just…wear whatever you tell me?"

"It's not as demanding as you might think. We'll find several different styles that fit you best, and Kurt will design your dresses for any big events, but for everything else, we'll need to shop. You'll need to pick a favorite designer, that way you'll be established as a brand favorite."

"What…what is a brand favorite?" Rachel looks over to Quinn instinctively, always looking to her first for answers.

"It's an informal term for when celebrities endorse brands just by wearing their products. If you continuously make statements like 'I love Rolex' or 'I only wear Rolex' they'll eventually label you as a brand favorite and send you one or two of their nicest watches, just for favoriting the brand publicly. But that's a ways down the road, babe."

Blaine nods eagerly.

"It is, but we want to get it established early. That's our big focus with you. We want you to appear natural and fresh to the scene. We want you to be just Broadway enough to fit in, but not so much so that you blend into the background."

"Exactly! We want you to be like girl next door meets Broadway chic! We want to make you cool and sexy, but also approachable and likable."

"But…I already am approachable and likable." Rachel says insecurely.

"Right, but we want to capitalize on that. We want to turn you into Broadway's Sweetheart, who never says no to a picture or an autograph. Trust us, honey, by the time we're through, the crowd won't be able to get enough of you."

Kurt is too much for Quinn and she's eager to leave now. Everything he says ends with an upward voice inflection and she knows if she had to spend all day with him, she would walk away with a mind numbing headache.

But Rachel is now talking animatedly next to her and again her enthusiasm increases because what makes Rachel happy has always made her happy too.

Eventually, she finds a moment where there is a lapse in conversation and decides to excuse herself then.

"Well, it was a pleasure meeting you gentlemen," she says only making eye contact with Blaine, "But I should get going."

Rachel smiles morphs into a frown instantly. "Do you have to go? You could do the market tomorrow."

Quinn shakes her head, apologetically. "Nope, today is the day. Besides, you all have so much to discuss. And pretty soon, I'll get bored. And once I get bored-"

"You'll get crabby and whiny," Rachel finishes, rolling her eyes.

"That's right, my love. I will." She stands up and Rachel does the same.

"But I'll meet you right back here in a few hours, okay? Just text me when you're almost done."

Rachel nods then leans in to hug her. It's a little too warm to be hugging for long periods of time, but Rachel holds her tight anyway, sad to see her leave.

"I love you," she says, with her cheek to Quinn's chest.

Quinn kisses the top of her head, being almost a head taller than her now in her own heeled Oxfords.

"Love you too, hot stuff." Rachel pulls away and laughs heartily at that.

And just for good measure, so that any nonbelievers may know just how crazy she is about Rachel, she places her hands on Rachel's hips and leans in just a little closer.

"Essas palavras aleatórias soam bem para qualquer pessoa que não fala português."

Rachel's eyebrows furrow immensely, having no clue what Quinn has said. But she knows it has something to do with Portuguese. Which is weird…because she was speaking in Portuguese, that much Rachel is certain of.

But the look in Quinn's eyes is a relatively familiar one, the one that says 'Just go with it', and so she does. She forces her cheeks to do a little blush, a practiced habit and smiles up adoringly at Quinn.

"So I'll just text you when I'm done then."

"Yes ma'am. And I'll come running." And with that, she kisses Rachel on the cheek one more time before grabbing her purse and departing.

"Nice meeting you both," Quinn says rather half-heartedly, but both men smile and return the sentiment anyway, before she heads down the street to her first destination.

Once they believe she is out of earshot, Kurt leans forward dramatically.

"Oh. My. God. Where did you find her and where can I get one?!" He shrieks.

"Hey!" Blaine jumps in.

"I'm sorry sweetheart," he says patting Blaine's hand that's resting on the table. "But that is the sort of woman you leave a _man_ for."

Rachel just laughs and blushes further, this time naturally.

"I don't know, I guess I just…got really _really _lucky." Rachel says smiling down at her own coffee.

"Um yes you did!" Kurt huffs out. "I would die if Blaine ever spoke Spanish to me."

"Oh, it's actually Portuguese." Quinn has spoken it on very rare occasion, but she is not fluent, like her father.

But Rachel knows absolutely no Portuguese, so when they ask her what Quinn said, it's a miracle that she comes up with an answer as quickly as she does.

"She said...I love you so much the only words strong enough to express that are in Portuguese."

"Oh my god... Is she always like that? Such a romantic?" Blaine says, placing his hand on his chin and sighing with a smile.

Rachel nods, smiling broadly. "Pretty much. She made me breakfast in bed and cooks my favorites all the time. She is the absolute best."

"Ugh, all that _and_ she was disgustingly beautiful," Kurt suddenly exclaims. He almost sounds angry, but Rachel knows exactly what he means. That is the definition of Quinn. So effortlessly beautiful that it makes you sick with appreciative anger.

"She has this timeless look about her." Blaine says, as if he's daydreaming.

And all of this over her fiancée?

These are the days when she feels like entering into this contract was the best idea Quinn has ever had.

Because she has someone who loves her now. Someone that the people will love and adore and Quinn does an excellent job of somehow deflecting all of the attention aimed at her and putting it back on Rachel.

Now, even though Quinn is the 'timeless beauty', it is Rachel that gets to have her. And Rachel must admit, that she is impressed with even herself right now.

She just continues to beam as the two men compare Quinn to the Hepburns, for once not at all eager to change the conversation back to herself.

* * *

She is talking a mile a minute as they walk back to Quinn's apartment later that afternoon. One hand is securely laced with Quinn's and the other is gesturing so wildly that other pedestrians sometimes have to duck just to avoid being hit.

If Rachel hears their complaints, she is doing an excellent job ignoring them.

She has a bright future ahead of her and Quinn beside her and nothing can kill her good mood today.

"Quinn this seriously just so surreal. It's one thing to imagine Broadway, but with Kurt it all just feels so possible. I mean, naturally, I could've made it on my own in due time but he's so knowledgeable and I feel like I can trust him, you know. He and Blaine. Oh, also! I forgot to ask. Between the two of them, they want a 15% commission…is that reasonable? Should I agree or try to persuade them to take it down to 10?"

Quinn thinks quietly for a moment, doing the math in her head. If Rachel uses $50,000 from their now shared bank account and she makes $150,000 from her first show, which is the estimated cost that a professional on a 6 month run makes, she would be left with $95,000 after paying back her "loan" with 10% interest. They now have two bank accounts. One for work related funds which accrues better interest and the other a personal account for the two of them with both a checking and a savings. If she also agreed to give Kurt and Blaine 15%, she would be left with $72,500. Which is more than enough for Rachel to live on for six months, especially considering that all of their money is shared now.

Though the price for Kurt and Blaine seems steep at first glance, she considers that having only one client to focus on and the cost of living in New York and any travel that they may have to do makes it quite a good deal.

"15% is very reasonable. Typically one person may take 20%, so they've probably been very modest. Besides, at any given time, you probably won't make much more than $200,000 so it's a fair deal. Are you happy with it?"

Rachel nods profusely, glad that Quinn agrees with her. "I am! I believe that Kurt and Blaine are going to take me to new heights and I think they should be well compensated for that! I don't just want to be coworkers, I really want us all to be friends, you know?"

Quinn hears the statement, but also the underlying message as well. What Rachel really means is that she wants Quinn to be nicer to Kurt because she wants them to all get along.

"Hmm." Quinn mumbles noncommittally.

"Quinn, I'm serious! He may be around for quite a long time and you're going to have to find some way to deal with that and the easiest solution is to just be friends. He doesn't have to be your _best _friend and you don't have to go to the movies together or anything but just be nice to him! For me!"

"Hmm." Quinn says again. But this time, Rachel knows she's been heard and that her request for kindness is being considered.

Quinn lets the silence linger for a moment before finding the courage to speak up. "Speaking of movies, did you want to go? We can just show up and see the next thing playing. We haven't done that in a while."

Quinn isn't particularly in the mood for a movie, but a movie guarantees her at least 2 more hours with Rachel, knowing that though they are walking towards Quinn's apartment, Rachel probably isn't going to come up, lest she be tempted to stay another night.

"I…I probably should get back to the hotel actually. It's been a really big day."

Silence lingers between them. Quinn is beyond disappointed, thinking for sure that Rachel would have liked more time with her as well. These days, Rachel is the clingier of the two and yet here she is, turning Quinn down.

"Oh…okay." Her voice sounds stoic, but she's anything but.

Rachel looks over at her Quinn and wants to change her mind almost immediately. To the untrained eye, Quinn looks like she doesn't care but Rachel knows better than to believe that. Which makes her heart soar in a way. Quinn _missed_ her. Quinn _wanted_ to spend more time with her. Both of these were feelings Rachel herself was familiar with, as she had sat in her hotel every evening after work just longing for her call or her kiss or even just her smile. She decides that she doesn't want a repeat week of that and decides to do them both a favor.

"But! How about I come over for dinner sometime next week and we can have a movie night? We'll just say screw it and stay up all night going back and forth choosing movies! Do you think you're up for it?" Rachel challenges with a smirk.

Quinn lights up immediately and rises to the challenge. "Me?! I bet you lunch that you'll be asleep by midnight!"

"Ha! Okay, fine. But if I stay up past midnight, even just _one _minute, you owe me lunch Quinn Fabray! From Capelli's! A mozzarella Panini!"

"Fine, but if you fall asleep, I want pita and hummus from Pita Passion!"

"Quinn! That is so far!"

"That's why I'm asking for it! I'm going to make you suffer for falling asleep on me! Do we have a deal?"

They unlace their fingers so that Rachel can use her right hand to shake hands with Quinn's.

"Deal."

Quinn smiles widely as if she's already won. "I am so excited for that hummus."

"Then you're probably going to need to set aside some time to get that next week."

"Nope, actually that's what my amazing fiancée is for." Quinn brings Rachel's hand up to kiss it and her lips seem to take away any of the annoyance Rachel feels.

"Anyway! What's on your schedule for the week?"

"Work. Dinner with you. Lunch from you. I anticipate a very exciting week. You?"

"About the same. Work. Dinner. An awesome follow up lunch. But I also am meeting with Blaine Monday through Wednesday to shop and get a bit of a makeover. Then Thursday I have my first appointment with my personal trainer and health coach."

Quinn scoffs. "Why would you possibly need a personal trainer? You work out harder than I do and do your yoga religiously."

"That's what I said," she exclaims. "But Blaine swore by her. He said she was absolutely brutal but would change my life. He says she's young but she's already worked with a bunch of big names in New York."

"Hmm, what's her name? Maybe I've heard of her."

"Umm her name is…" Rachel uses her free hand to take out her phone where she had begun taking notes and putting things down in her calendar. "Santana…Santana Lopez."

#######

**First, I MUST apologize for the wait! I completely forgot to tell you that in these upcoming weeks as the semester ends, I have exams and numerous papers. And obviously by the time I've finished that, my fingers are on the verge of falling off and I have no energy to write anything. So this chapter took way too long, but it's rather long and fluffy and light. Also, the Portuguese should be pretty accurate as one of my Brazilian reviewers was kind enough to give me the proper translation because Google translate is the WORST haha. It should roughly translate to "These are just random words that sound good to anyone who doesn't speak Portugeuse."**

**Also, if I'm being honest with myself, it will probably be another two weeks until the next update and I want to pre-apologize for that because I know what it's like to come to expect updates by a certain time. (I myself am impatiently waiting on FerryBerry to update! Gaaah!) But I do hope you enjoyed the chapter regardless! Sorry again for the chapter mix ups with 12, but thanks to everyone who just PM'd me! I'll respond to all of that stuff later, as well! Thank you to the favoriters, followers, and reviewers! 300! WOOOOT! You guys rock! Until next time! :) **

**Title By Kina Grannis **


	14. Show You Off

This was such an awful idea. As Quinn struggles to stay awake at her desk, she regrets letting Rachel to convince her to stay up all night watching movies on what they still deem as "school nights".

But she can't bring herself to take a single moment back. In fact, it was probably the most fun she had had in quite some time. She had surprised Rachel with a vegan pizza she ordered from across town and Rachel had surprised her with a behind the scenes DVD of the making of her favorite movie, Casablanca.

They had stayed up going back and forth choosing a movie, something they hadn't done in years. Things had gotten hectic for the both of them both during and after college, it seemed. But last night had reminded Quinn how much she loved the simplicity of being with Rachel.

And contrary to what Quinn predicted, Rachel _had_ managed to stay awake until about 12:40. In Quinn's defense, Rachel put Funny Girl in around 11 which guaranteed her at least two hours of being wide awake reciting lines and dancing around singing.

But Quinn is not a sore loser, so when the clock struck midnight she had given Rachel a congratulatory kiss and told her she should expect her mozzarella Panini time sometime in the nearby future.

Rachel, on the other hand, is not a humble woman so she had done an entire interpretive dance about what it felt like to beat Quinn at her own challenge. And Quinn had laughed and laughed throughout the whole thing, however, she is certainly not amused now.

She is sitting at her desk, chin in her hand, staring at her computer screen. She and three other junior level employees have been put on a rather large project and her portion is nearly done, but even still she doesn't want to come across as a slacker. One of her group members, Josh Reynolds, has been particularly on her case while working together, questioning everything she says and does. She wonders if he has a problem with women in general or if it's against her personally.

Everyone here is very well aware of who she is and some of them have been kind to her, finding her very capable. But of course, there have also been many, like Josh, who have labelled her as an incompetent rich girl riding on her father's coattails.

This is her opportunity to show him first hand that she earned this job, just like him, so she runs her hand across her face, and puts her focus back on the numbers on her screen.

"Hey Quinn?" Quinn looks up at Roger, grateful for a distraction, even after committing to getting back to work.

"Yeah, what's up?"

"I've got the Advance Market graph up, but I can't get it to segregate by market share, only profit. Do you know how to fix it?"

Quinn squints, trying to think back on her experiences with market tables in Excel, before nodding.

"Yeah, bring me your laptop. I'll do it." He breathes a sigh of relief and both he and Josh, who are partnering for their portion of the project, come over to her cubicle and stand behind her watching on as she fixes their table.

"Okay, so if you want to segregate by share, you need to first organize the companies by industry, that way you can make them easier to identify. If you do share first, then industry, it's much more complicated, you know?"

She turns around to look at them and finds only Roger to be listening. Josh is staring up looking at something else entirely, which doesn't surprise her at all.

_It's like he purposely ignores anything that may prove my worth here. _

"Yeah yeah, that makes total sense," Roger speaks for both of them.

"Yeah, okay, well, just hit control then click organize by—-"

"Ho-ly shit," Josh interrupts.

They both turn their heads around to him, concerned by his unprofessional and unusual outburst.

"What? Have you really never seen this before?" Quinn asks, not understanding what his statement is about.

"No, I mean holy _shit!" _He nods his head to something off in the distance that Quinn can't see while sitting, but when Roger turns his head to look at whatever Josh is seeing, he too looks shocked.

A smile slowly starts to grow on both of their faces. "Please tell me we're hiring. Please tell me we've just hired her and she's going to be working on our floor."

Josh shakes his head adamantly. "No way. There's no way she works here, she's waaay too hot. No offense or anything Quinn."

Quinn scoffs and rolls her eyes at that sexist comment and decides she needs to see whatever it is that has left them so unable to think properly.

"What the hell are you guys talking ab—", but she never finishes that statement. Because what she sees causes her brain to lose its ability to function as well.

Standing on the other side of the glass window that separates all of the offices from the lobby and the receptionists' desk is Rachel Berry. But not the Rachel that Quinn is familiar with. No this Rachel is…

_Fucking hot, _Quinn thinks.

Rachel is wearing a pair of gray and black linen shorts with a thin black shirt. The shirt is so thin, in fact, that she's pretty sure that she can see Rachel's bra underneath.

She's undecided about how she feels about that, but she knows what her body thinks as her heartbeat increases and her face flushes.

As she moves around the desk a bit, Quinn can see that she is also wearing a pair of knee high black boots that in any other setting would be seen as slutty, but Rachel makes them look quite classy.

"Rachel?!" Quinn certainly didn't say it loud enough for her to hear it, but in that same moment both she and the receptionist turn and look her way.

Rachel smiles broadly and waves as she prepares to walk through the glass doors.

"I'm sorry, you know her?!" Josh asks disbelievingly.

But Quinn doesn't even respond. She's too surprised to see Rachel to say much more. She scoots away from her desk and meets Rachel just in front of Roger's cubicle on the other side.

"Rachel, what are you doing here? And…what are you wearing?!"

"Hi, baby!" She whispers conspiratorially. "I'm sorry to bother you, I know you're busy, but I just wanted to come say hi! And I wanted to have lunch together!"

Quinn shakes her head because even though her first question was about Rachel's presence, the most important question is about her appearance.

"Rachel," she tries again, "What…are you wearing?"

Rachel looks down at herself nervously and attempts to pull the shorts down a little more, to no avail.

"I…Blaine kind of…made me over. Do you-I mean, I know it's not my usual look but…"

She's looking for Quinn's approval. She's looking for Quinn to say that she doesn't look as ridiculous as she feels. Oddly enough, she's worn a few skirts shorter than this, but somehow this is different. Those skirts were never intended to be sexy. The goal was never for someone to look at her. But this outfit and hair and makeup all scream 'Look at me!' and that makes her self-conscious in every possible way.

Her nervousness continues to grow as Quinn says nothing. Just stares down at her, taking it all in.

"Honestly, I don't like it much either," she lies. "I think I'm going to tell Blaine that I would prefer to go back to my—"

"Rachel this is going to probably sound awful, but I didn't even know you _could _look this good. The whole outfit is so so… sexy."

Rachel's hair is tousled in that perfect way that makes it seem fixed but messy. Like someone ran their hands through it recklessly but it still works.

Her make up is dark and smoky around her eyes and Quinn realizes that though it's a terrible time, she's growing wet just looking at her. Fortunately Rachel speaks up taking her mind off of how turned on she's becoming.

"Well, seeing as I know exactly what you mean, I will allow that comment to slide." She blushes. And looks away shyly to find two gentlemen staring at her in awe.

She looks back at Quinn to whisper again, "Are you going to introduce me to your coworkers?"

Quinn shakes her head. "I am in no mood to share you right now. You wanna go grab lunch?"

Rachel flushes at the compliment. "Actually," she lifts a bag Quinn hadn't seen until now, "I know that I won the bet, but I thought I would do something nice and bring you your pita and hummus anyway. You did endure that interpretive dance rather gracefully." They both laugh lowly, trying not to draw attention to themselves. But as Quinn looks around for a place to eat lunch, she notices that despite trying to be low-key, they have attracted an audience of about 10 men shamelessly staring their way.

She grabs Rachel's free hand and leads her to the conference room which is in full view of the entire office. The walls are made of glass much like the rest of the walls in the building, but fortunately, these windows frost and with the touch of a button, the rest of the office becomes a muted blur to them.

"Oooh, we should get these for at home. I love having glass walls in the shower, but sometimes there's this creeper that I think watches me as she brushes her teeth. It was cute at first, but now it's just gotten weird." Rachel's face looks disgusted as Quinn turns scarlet as she realizes that she has been caught.

_I thought for sure I was being conspicuous. _

Quinn attempts to divert the attention from her back onto Rachel. "Well," she steps into Rachel's personal space, "A few months ago, I might have struck down that idea, but if you're going to be walking around looking this good 24/7, I myself may need a little more…privacy as well when I shower."

She leans down to kiss Rachel and the moment their lips find each other's, Rachel's tongue peeks out to caress Quinn's. They kiss heatedly for a few minutes before Quinn loses her self-control for a moment and leans down slightly to hook her hands behind Rachel's thighs. She grips them tightly and lifts. Rachel lets out a small shriek and laughs into her neck, where she burrows and buries her in kisses.

Quinn places her on top of the glass conference table and is more than ready to get on top of her when Rachel places a hand between them, effectively stopping her.

"Baby, I am starving."

"I've got something you can eat." Quinn says in a haste and she immediately regrets it. "Oh my god, can we please pretend I did not just say that?! It sounds like a line from a terrible dubious consent porno!"

Rachel starts laughing out loud and is already pushing her body away. "I'm not going to ask about how you know what that sort of pornography is like. I'm just going to consider the mood officially ruined, so are you ready to eat _now?" _

Before Quinn even responds, Rachel takes the food out of the small paper bag. Rachel remains on the table with Quinn standing between her legs as she feeds her a piece of pita with the hummus.

"Mmmm, thank you Lord for Pita Passion." Quinn smiles up at the heavens as she chews. She kicks off her heels and the feeling of food in her mouth and solid ground beneath her feet is almost orgasmic.

"How's work going?" Rachel asks as she dips the remainder of the piece of bread and eats it herself.

"It's fine. It's work."

Rachel nods, accepting the same generic response as always. She tried once to ask Quinn more in-depth questions about work but found that she had no clue what any of the terms meant. And then Quinn was so into it that she had gone on a 30 minute rant about something called an investment model. So Rachel knows better than to press anymore. But she is curious about one thing.

"Sooo, you're hot coworkers?"

"Oh my gosh, right?! I have to say, Josh-the tall guy in the silver suit- Josh has never been speechless. That's how beautiful you look, Rachel."

That is not exactly what Rachel meant when she asked the question. She was more trying to gauge if Quinn was attracted to either of them because she's sure that before this contract, Quinn would've gone out with someone tall, intelligent, and handsome like either of those men. But knowing that Quinn's mind didn't even go there brings her more pleasure than it probably should.

Rachel smiles down at the new piece of hummus in her hands that's waiting in the wings to be eaten.

"Thanks Quinn."

She doesn't see it, but Quinn nods lightly. "Just being honest." She mumbles.

Rachel in a move that is uncharacteristic for her, wraps her legs around Quinn's waist to draw her closer so that their bodies are as close as they can be in this position.

"And to think…I'm all yours." She says playfully but really for Quinn it's the thing that keeps playing in her mind. That Rachel is all hers. So to hear Rachel confirm it makes her heart soar.

"Lucky me." She is fed another piece of pita and she chews it carefully before continuing. "Speaking of 'lucky me'," she says sarcastically, "I need a favor."

Rachel perks right up. "Sure what's up?"

"I have a few admirers out there. Roger, the guy next to silver suit douche. He's the one I was telling you about. Super nice, he just doesn't know I'm seeing someone. I was hoping you could just…" She trails off, gesturing ambiguously, not knowing exactly what she wants her to do.

"Intimidate him?" Rachel finishes for her. "Or just be cool and friendly?"

"Eh, little bit of both maybe? Like scare him enough so he gets the hint and backs off but still be nice and friendly. Can you do that?"

Rachel scoffs, offended. "Quinn, you should know by now that my skill range is wide and my abilities are in the multitudes. I can certainly do that. I know just what you're looking for."

Quinn gives her a quick peck to show her thanks and they finish lunch quickly.

"Thanks for bring me lunch by the way. This was really nice."

"Yeah, of course! It was mainly for my benefit more than anything. I wanted to see you." Rachel says shyly, throwing their trash away.

"Well, I'm glad you stopped by. This was super thoughtful."

They stare at each other, forgetting about the world momentarily before Rachel breaks the silence.

"Hand holding or no hand holding?" she asks holding her hand out and moving it out to Quinn and then back to herself to illustrate her point.

"Hmm, no hand holding, but I'm going to put my hand on your back. Effective while being less in your face." Rachel laughs and nods.

"You are ridiculously precise."

"Do you like that?" Quinn says unsure of whether 'precise' is a positive or negative.

"Oh," Rachel leans in one last time to kiss her and when she pulls back, she whispers on her lips, "I absolutely love it."

They share a quick smile before Quinn defrosts the windows and they leave the conference room.

Once they're back in the general office, with several eyes on them, Rachel grows nervous and Quinn can suddenly feel her tense next to her.

"Rachel, you look so hot right now. You could speak baby talk to them and they would love you. Don't worry."

Rachel nods imperceptibly as they approach where Roger and Josh are sitting.

"Hey guys?" They both look up from their quiet conversation and upon seeing Rachel they stand immediately and straighten their ties.

"Hey, Quinn, what's-uh, what's up?" Josh says quickly. He has never once been this kind to her. In fact, she's pretty sure he has never even called her by her first name. To see him like this is amusing to her, but at the same time, she doesn't like it. She doesn't like the thought of him being so into Rachel, but she reminds herself that she's with Rachel and that's all that matters.

"I just wanted you to meet Rachel." She turns towards Rachel and places her hand on her back as discussed, while slightly urging her forward.

Rachel smiles broadly and extends her hand to Josh first.

"Hello!" She says cheerfully.

"I uh…I'm Josh Reynolds." He stutters, but reaches out to shake her hand and squeezes gently.

"It's a pleasure to meet you Joshua." Quinn watches on as he just smiles wider, as opposed to correcting her.

"I assure you, the pleasure is all mine." Quinn rolls her eyes as he attempts to flirt with her shamelessly.

Rachel giggles charmingly and bats her long dark eyelashes at him before pulling her hand away.

She turns towards Roger and looks him firmly in the eyes and smirks like she knows a secret that he is not aware of.

"Roger Alexander….I've heard so much about you." She slowly reaches her hand forward to shake his hand and he tentatively reaches out to shake her hand.

"Have you now?" He chuckles, turning on his own charm.

"That I have. Quinn mentions you often."

Roger looks over to Quinn and smirks at her. She's not exactly sure what the smirk is for, whether it's for her talking about him outside of work or Rachel knowing his name already.

"All good things I hope?" He says looking back at Rachel.

But Rachel just smiles wider and squeezes his hand a little tighter, refusing to let go.

"Well, let's see…if you were engaged to Quinn and found out one of her coworkers was constantly flirting with her, would you consider that a 'good thing'?"

It takes a moment for the word 'engaged' to sink in but when it does Roger flounders for a second, looking to Josh for help, but he looks just as lost.

"Uhh, no-I-no."

"Well then no Roger, I haven't heard all good things." She says with mock sadness and a smirk on her face.

Quinn can barely keep herself from laughing out loud before Rachel turns her way and asks where the restroom is located.

"Just over there, by the conference room." Rachel gently runs her hand down Quinn's arm before heading towards the bathroom. The moment it seems she's out of earshot, Roger speaks up.

"Oh my God, Quinn I am so sorry, I had _no _idea you were engaged! I had no way of knowing! You don't have any pictures up and you-you never mention her!"

He's clearly apologetic and Quinn almost feels bad because in a way she did sort of lead him on.

"It's really not a big deal, Rog. I'm just a private person."

"No, seriously Quinn," He tries again, "I want you to know that I'm really not that kind of guy."

Quinn nods, completely buying it. He's never struck her as the kind of guy to flirt with an obviously taken woman. But she does not know exactly what else to say to assuage his guilt.

Josh finally manages to find his voice amongst the silence a moment later.

"I'm sorry, but am I the only that is super confused?"

"Yes you are, but that doesn't surprise me one bit," Quinn quips, but for once he just ignores her.

"No really. Like, you're _engaged _to her and yet you have no pictures up? Never mentioned her once? Never even alluded to the fact that you're into women?"

"I don't see how any of that's anyone's business but my own." Quinn is growing defense because she can't tell where he's going with this and she can't decide what would be worse: him not believing that she and Rachel are together or him judging her for being with a woman.

But either way, she's prepared for whatever he throws her way.

"Forget about that, are you seriously telling me you've got a girl like _that _waiting for you at home_, _yet you have no photos on your desk? I mean, no ring on either of your fingers?!"

"So what, _Joshua?!_" She mocks. "What difference does it make? We know we're together. I don't need to plaster it all over the office or put on a ring so someone can validate my relationship with Rachel!"

Quinn is being a little louder than she should be in a professional, office setting, which causes a few people to look their way. And so Josh puts up his hands in surrender.

"Look, I'm not judging your relationship at all Quinn. All I'm saying is that if I had a girl like that, a girl as beautiful and sexy as her, I would be _sending_ photos to everyone in the office. I would wear a ring just so people would ask me who the lucky lady is, just so I could pull out a picture of _her _and tell them that I'm the lucky one. That's all. I'm just saying is that I had a girl like yours, I would show her off every chance I got."

Quinn wants to tell him that, in her defense, Rachel hasn't always looked this good, but she's certain that will make her sound worse than she already looks.

Sure, Quinn has always found her to be beautiful, but she's always had a unique style that, while playfully cute, no one would ever call sexy. But there is no time to say anything to him because a few moments later, Rachel is approaching Quinn again, placing her hand on her back.

"Hey, love. I gotta get going. I'm supposed to meet Britt soon for yoga."

Quinn doesn't speak, she merely nods which makes Rachel wonder exactly what happened in the two minutes that she was gone. But she knows that she won't get any answers while in front of her coworkers.

"Walk me to the elevator?"

"Sure."

Rachel looks towards the two men. "Joshua, it was a pleasure to meet you. And Roger," she smiles lightly so that he knows she is being facetious when she says, "I hope to hear only good things from now on."

Roger nods emphatically and reaches out one more time to shake her hand, before she laces her fingers with Quinn's and they walk to the elevator hand and hand. Rachel ignores any questioning looks thrown their way and Quinn doesn't even notice, far too lost in her own head.

"Are you okay? Did I do a good job? They weren't judgmental about it right? Because seriously Quinn, I could have my dad's on the phone with the ACLU in no time at—"

Quinn interrupts her with a hearty laugh. It has been awhile since Rachel has threatened to contact the ACLU.

"No, you were perfect. They loved you."

"Then what's wrong?"

"Nothing is wrong. I'm fine." But Rachel can tell that's not true. She knows what Quinn looks like when she's perfectly fine and though she can't exactly figure out what state she's in, Rachel knows she's far from 'fine'.

"Quiiiin. What's wrong?"

"Nothiiiing," she sighs out. "You just…you look absolutely, ridiculously, drop dead gorgeous and I just…it's just taking some getting used to. My brain hasn't quite caught up with the rest of me yet."

Rachel blushes profusely, but nods. "I know exactly what you mean. I looked in the mirror and just…stared at myself. I'm so done up and made over that I feel like Cinderella going to the ball."

"Cinderella huh?" Quinn smirks while pulling her in for a hug. "Does that make me Prince Charming then?"

"I don't know Quinn." She says skeptically. "It's an awfully big responsibility. Giving me the night of my life _and_ making me fall in love with you, all before midnight? I don't think you're ready for all that."

"Let me prove you wrong. Let me take you out this weekend?" Quinn whispers into her neck.

Rachel pulls away slowly and hesitantly asks, "Like a…like a date?"

"Like a greet you with flowers, dressing to the nines, going to dinner, evening walk in the park, dancing in the rain with no music in the background _date." _

Any nervousness Quinn feels subsides immediately upon seeing the smile on Rachel's face, the light in her eyes being indescribable.

"Well, with a cliché night like that ahead of me, how can I say no?"

Rachel leans in lightly to peck her lips and hardly wants to pull away. She wishes more than anything that they were both back in the conference room, with the windows frosted. She wants Quinn so badly, and has for the last few months but Quinn hasn't approached her to have the sex talk and she refuses to be the first to bring it up, so for now they're in limbo, caught somewhere between making out furiously and lightly grinding on each other for even the smallest ounce of relief.

But she reminds herself that they have other, more important things to work out before they jump into something as heavy as sex.

But a first date sounds like an excellent place to start.

"I'm excited." Quinn's says, pulling her back into reality. "I cannot wait to show you off. Promise me you'll wear something new? Something super sexy?"

Rachel blushes again at Quinn's assertiveness and decides to try some of her own on for size. "Of course. But if I squeeze into a tight dress just for you," she leans in a little wanting this to be for Quinn's ears only. "Promise me you'll be there to help me take it off at the end of the night?"

Quinn involuntarily closes her eyes as she hears the insinuation in Rachel's voice, but she manages a barely there nod. She immediately wants to drag Rachel back to the conference room and throw her back on the long, oval-shaped table.

But just then, the elevator dings and opens slowly for Rachel to enter.

"I'll call you then to decide on a time." Quinn says as she reaches her arm out to hold the door for her.

Rachel nods and bats her eyelashes subconsciously, not knowing how to respond to this charming, chivalrous side to Quinn.

"I'll see you later Quinn. And thank you for sharing lunch with me."

The doors begin to close just as Quinn responds. "The pleasure was all mine, princess."

There's isn't much time left after Quinn speaks but she just barely manages to catch Rachel bite her bottom lip to keep from smiling uncontrollably and just like that, she's back to counting down the moments until she can see Rachel again.

**######**

**I know there may seem like there's not much here, but it was an important chapter that really gets the ball rolling for the future chapters. :) Just a heads up, finals is next week so it may take a few extra days to update, but then I'll have a lot more time on my hands and so I'm hoping to update weekly! Also, I have a new fic out called Bed of Lies! It's much different from this one so feel free to check that out! And thank you guys so much for just being patient with me as I try balance writing and life! As always, thank you for all the follows, favorites and reviews! You guys seriously motivate me to get these chapters out sooner! **

**Lastly, I'm such a visual person so this link will show you the outfit Rachel is wearing. **

** cgi/img-thing?.out=jpg&amp;size=l&amp;tid=64225168**

**Until next time! :) **

**Title by Dan &amp; Shay **


	15. Let's Get It On

She's running so late. Not even fashionably so. Just plain late.

She had gotten stuck in a meeting until 6 presenting the pitch that she, Josh, and Roger had developed. The client, a small family-owned business looking to invest money in healthy stock, was highly impressed with them but also had a million and one questions. Quin was all too happy to answer them, feeling the need to show off being the only female at the head of the table, but landing the account came at the expense of being late to pick Rachel up.

Upon leaving the office, she had the hardest time grabbing a cab, and had missed both subways that would've put her close to her own apartment where Rachel had agreed to meet her at 5:30.

So she walked 14 blocks until she managed to hail a cab for the last 6.

Knowing how easily Rachel worries, she was surprised when she had left work to find that Rachel had not called or texted even once. So she had tried calling Rachel but after at least four tries but to no avail, now _she's_ beginning to worry. She has called Brittany, but she hasn't seen or heard from Rachel since earlier that morning as she and Sam had taken a day trip to the beach.

This only serves to worry Quinn more. But she finds that her worrying is all for naught because when she opens the door to the apartment, she finds a snoring Rachel right there on the couch. Her phone is laying right next to her on the floor but when Quinn walks over and inspects it, she finds that it's on silent.

She laughs to herself, knowing this is a typical Rachel move to set multiple alarms and keep your phone fully charged next to you but then forget to turn the ringer on.

"Hey Rach? Baby?"

Rachel stirs but doesn't awaken.

"Raaachel," she coos running her fingers through her silky, brown locks.

Her eyes slowly open and the moment they do, they widen with fear then fill with realization.

"Oh my goodness, Quinn! I slept right through my alarm!" She frantically sits up and runs her hands through her messy hair, looking around for God knows what.

"Quinn, I am so sorry! If you give me just like 10 minutes, I'll be ready!"

She laughs as Rachel jumps up from the couch and heads to the bathroom and shuts the door. But immediately after it closes, it opens again and Rachel reappears.

"What should I wear?"

Quinn smirks. "You know what I want you to wear."

Rachel just laughs and nods. "Right! I'll be ready in 10."

Quinn nods and heads to the bedroom to change her own clothes. She picked this dress this morning anticipating wearing it on their date and the whoops and whistles thrown her way all day by Josh and Roger were a clear indication that she had made a good choice, but since she has the time, she may as well spruce things up a bit.

She takes a few minutes to change from heels to sandals so as to look a little more casual, reapplies some make up, and puts a few more curls in her hair.

By this time, she expects Rachel to be waiting at the door, but when Quinn takes a peak at the bathroom door 13 minutes later, she can hear Rachel still hidden away in the bathroom.

She figures while she waits, she should be proactive and at least make a reservation somewhere else since they missed theirs at 6 p.m. and to make up for being late, she makes a few special last minute arrangements.

When that's done, she checks her phone again.

**7:21. **

She sighs. She wants to complain so badly, but what right does she have? She was an hour and a half late for a date that _she _requested. So she just leans back and settles into the couch, prepared to wait patiently.

**7:49**

"Rachel! Come on! You've been in there almost an hour! What happened to 'I'll be out in five baby!'" she mocks.

Rachel cracks the door just a smidgen but doesn't poke her head out. In fact, she purposely stands in a spot where Quinn can't even see her through the mirror.

"And I will, Quinn! But every time you bother me like this, it sets me back! Now please, be patient. I'll be out momentarily."

**8:19.**

She was way too ambitious about that 8:30 reservation. She has already called the restaurant a second time to push back their reservation. And now she waits again.

**8:27.**

"Oh my god, Rachel! You're taking FOREVER! Let's go!"

"Two minutes Quinn! Finishing touches! I just need-"

But by this time, Quinn has had more than enough. She has been up since 6 and this waiting and sitting is making her sleepy and cranky. She is in absolutely no mood to wait anymore.

She gets up and marches over to the door and pushes it open before Rachel can even finishes her sentence.

"Rachel, I'm so serious, I-" She wants to finish that sentence, but she can't for the life of her remember where she was going with it.

Perhaps it's her hair in a tight bun with a black lace headband to keep the stray hairs in place. Perhaps it's the sleeveless black dress that ties around the neck and doesn't even come to her knees. Maybe it's the dark, smoky eyes or the way her calves look in those corset heels, or all of those things combined. But immediately upon seeing Rachel, she can think of nothing but how she would love to remove that tight dress, undue that bun so she can run her fingers through her hair, pulling just hard enough for Rachel to beg for more, and untie all those laces before kissing her way from her feet to her calves to her—

"Quinn!" Quinn is finally pulled from her daze and she looks back up to look Rachel in the eye.

"Rachel…"

"…What?" She sounds skeptical and insecure but there is little time to consider if there is an issue with her clothing choice because the next thing she knows, Quinn is pushing her backwards against the countertop.

In heels, they are about the same height, which makes the feeling even more powerful when Rachel looks her directly in the eyes. She feels something in her core that propels her to lean forward and press her cheek to Rachel's. Her breathing is hot on Quinn's face and Quinn can't stop herself, she leans down and presses soft, but hungry kisses on Rachel's neck.

Rachel immediately lets out an indulgent sigh, craning her neck to the side to give Quinn what's she after. Quinn wraps her hands around her waist to pull her even close and for a moment Rachel has no clue what to do with her hands. But then she feels Quinn's hot, wet tongue on her collarbone and she has no choice but to grip the counter behind her tightly.

The strap of the dress becomes difficult to work around after a few minutes. Hell, the whole dress is making it difficult for Quinn to do the things she's trying to do.

"I want to take this off of you. So badly," Quinn moans against her skin.

"Then do it," she challenges, but Quinn just laughs, her warm breath making Rachel tremble.

"Oh, if only I could Rachel, but you've spent nearly 2 hours getting all dressed up. Which means we are_ definitely_ going out."

"Aghhhhh, Quinn!"

Quinn laughs harder now and pulls away. "I'm sorry babe."

Rachel rolls her eyes as she leaves the bathroom. "No, you're not at all. But you will be. You'll be lucky if you even get a goodnight kiss out of me, Quinn Fabray."

Rachel points sternly in her direction, but she knows after Rachel sees what she has planned, she'll be giving her more than just a goodnight kiss when they return home.

"Whatever you say baby. Now, are you ready to go?"

"Yeah, all ready. Let me just grab a jacket. You never know how the weather at night can be."

Quinn uses the opportunity to sneak out the front door while Rachel is talking and she counts to 10 before knocking.

Rachel opens the door apprehensively before realizing it's just Quinn. Then she just looks confused.

"Rachel? Berry?"

Rachel squints at her before realizing what she's doing.

"Yes, Quinn Fabray?" Rachel asks hesitantly, opening the door a bit wider.

Quinn smiles and nods. "That's me," she looks down at Rachel's outfit and even though she has already seen her, touched and kissed her even, she still has to take a moment to catch her breath and find her words. "Wow…you look…wow."

Rachel blushes and giggles. "Well thank you. So do you."

Quinn isn't dressed to the nines or anything close to it. She's wearing a deep blue sundress with a sheer top, a pair of closed black thong sandals, and an easy smile but she nods appreciatively anyway.

They stand there in silence for a moment just looking each other in the eye before Quinn speaks.

"So, uh, reservations are for 9, so we should probably go."

Rachel nods and closes the apartment door behind her as she exits. She locks it before turning back to Quinn and they proceed to the elevator in silence.

22 years of knowing each other and yet they are experiencing a first right now. A first date. And Rachel is more nervous for this date than she's ever been in her life.

"I usually don't do stuff like this," Rachel says nervously, looking over at Quinn as they step into the elevator. "I usually don't let my friends set me up on blind dates, but Brittany would not stop talking about you."

They both laugh nervously. "Same here. I don't usually date, I'm a bit of a workaholic. But Sam said you stay pretty busy too, so…."

Rachel nods, "Yeah? What do you do?" She asks as they step out of the elevator on the ground floor.

"I'm an investment banker at Keegan &amp; Dwyer."

"Oh wow. I hope I don't bore you then. I don't know anything about that stuff. And I'm terrible at math. Math is a part of it, right?"

Quinn laughs heartily at that. She knows how awful Rachel is at math and she is well aware that even though she has tried to teach her a thing or two about the stock market, Rachel absorbs none of it.

"Well, lucky for you, I read up on what normal people like to talk about before I picked you up so I've got a few safe, prearranged topics." Quinn smirks over at her.

"That is such a relief!" Rachel wipes her brow playfully as Quinn holds opens the door for her and she is hit with the fresh night air.

"So, what's your first safe area of discussion?"

"Let's see….how about your profession? I hear you're on Broadway?"

Rachel brightens instantaneously, "Not quite. But I'm working on it. I hired an agent recently and he's been sifting through scripts for me. So hopefully I'll have an audition soon."

"That's awesome. I'm sure you'll land something soon. I bet you're amazing."

"You haven't even heard me sing, Quinn."

"Well, if your voice is half as beautiful as you are, I'm confident you'll be on Broadway in no time."

Rachel blushes yet again and tries to think of an equally charming response, but before she can come up with anything, Quinn puts her hand on her lower back and leads her to a limousine parked near the sidewalk.

"A-a limo? You must be a very important person, Ms. Fabray." Rachel says highly impressed as the driver, dressed in a stylish black suit, opens the door for them.

"Oh not at all, Ms. Berry. In fact, the only important person here tonight is you. You're Broadway bound and though you may not be there yet, I figured we should start practicing treating you like the gold star you are."

Despite this weird game that they're playing where they pretend not to know each other, Rachel sees in this moment her Quinn shining through. Her sweet, thoughtful, considerate Quinn and she wants to kiss her. But then she remembers that for the sake of the game, she must refrain. So she gently kisses Quinn on the cheek in thanks before lowering her body to enter the limousine.

Already this is the best first date she's ever been on.

* * *

She waits until the waiter is done pouring the glasses of wine before speaking.

"So where did you attend college? You seem like the Ivy League type."

Quinn laughs as she takes a sip of what has to be the best red wine she's ever tasted. This place will surely be the most money she's ever spent on a meal but she is certain it will all be worth it, if the wine is anything to go by.

"No Ivy for me. I went to NYU actually."

Rachel gasps dramatically, "Really?! I went to NYADA! We were only half an hour apart this whole time, it's a wonder we hadn't met already."

Quinn smirks at how much Rachel is loving this. "Yes, that is a wonder."

"Hmm…you know, Brittany always goes on and on about how smart you are and all of your accomplishments. It seems to me like you could've gone anywhere. What made you choose NYU?"

Now it is Rachel's turn to smirk slyly. She already knows why Quinn chose NYU, but she's selfish and she wants to hear Quinn say it again.

"Oh, no particular thing really. I just wanted to piss my dad off. He was an MIT grad."

"No other reasons?" Rachel pouts.

She pretends to think for a moment, "No, not really." But Rachel looks utterly depressed as she sips her wine and so Quinn decides to indulge her. "But either way, I'm glad I chose NYU. Who knows how we would've met if I had gone to MIT?"

"Or if we would've met at all," Rachel adds and Quinn nods in agreement.

"And that would've been an absolute tragedy."

Rachel flushes crimson yet again and decides to distract herself with a menu, but her eyes bulge when she takes a look at the prices.

"Quinn…this is…expensive."

"It's fine Rachel, please, order whatever you'd like. It's on me."

Rachel shifts uncomfortably, searching for the most affordable thing on the menu.

Pasta Carbonara a la vodka. $39.

She considers briefly just getting an appetizer but she knows in a place like this the portions may be small. Too small for her famished stomach.

So though she feels terrible doing so, when the waiter arrives to take their orders, she orders the Carbonara with a small salad and a side of steamed vegetables. Quinn orders a steak for herself with soup and baked potatoes.

Once Simon is out ear shot, Quinn leans forwards and speaks shyly. "That's a beautiful dress."

Rachel runs her hands over her dress to smooth out non-existent wrinkles. "Thank you…I-I dressed myself."

She brings both hands to her face to cover her immediate embarrassment. "Obviously I dress myself. I just meant that I'm just getting the hang out doing my own make up and whatnot. I have a stylist that's been doing it the last few days and teaching me everything, so…thank you for the compliment. It means a lot. It's nice to know I don't look completely awful."

"Far from awful, I'd say."

Rachel wants to play with her hair, as a nervous habit, but it's wrapped tightly in a bun. So instead, she fiddles with the table cloth for a moment before Quinn reaches over to take her hands in her own.

"You know Rachel, there's no reason to be nervous. I know the idea of a first date can be pretty intimidating, but just…just pretend like we've known each other our whole lives. Just talk to me like a lifelong friend…or something."

Rachel can barely contain her laughter. "Or something," she smirks.

"Or something," Quinn nods.

"Okay then, _old friend, _how was your day?"

"Really great, actually," Quinn smiles and leans back casually, one hand still holding Rachel's, as she takes another sip of wine.

"We landed this huge account we've been working on all week. It's like a ma and pop Italian place, but they're doing really well for themselves. I know they're a little hesitant to do something like this, invest in stock you know? But this will be good for them. I honestly can't wait to report how much money they've accrued! It's the best part of the job. Telling someone that what started as $50,000 has turned into 75 or 100, just by knowing where to invest the funds. It's amazing what a little knowledge about economics and the stock market can do for people."

Rachel laughs to herself. Quinn is beautiful. She always has been, naturally. But right here, in a sexy, almost see-through sundress talking about her job animatedly, she looks breathtaking. She wants to say as much, but she doesn't want to intensify the mood, so she sticks with a light, witty remark.

"Wow, I had no idea I was going to be going out with such a nerd," she grimaces with just a hint of a smile so Quinn knows she's kidding.

Quinn throws her head back in laughter. "Okay! But I'm sure you won't be complaining when this nerd picks up the bill."

"Yeah, but that was to be expected. I knew when you told me you'd pick me up that you were going to be the 'man' in this situation, if you will. So I wasn't worried."

"Well, regardless, I can tell you that if I hadn't just gotten a 5% commission for landing this account, we would've been eating at der Weinerschnitzel."

Rachel's smile widens, but she squints hard trying to figure out if 5% commission is a lot of money. She's always been awful at math. So awful, in fact, that Quinn has been doing her math homework since 10th grade, a secret she will take to her grave.

Quinn laughs at her 'thinking face'. "It's about $5,000 Rachel."

Rachel breathes an audible sigh of relief. "Wow, that's actually really great Quinn! I'm proud of you!"

She and Quinn have spoken on the phone throughout the week about the project. She tried to call Quinn early in the morning or later in the evening so as not to bother her at work but each time, Quinn informed her in a whisper that she was still at the office and would text her instead. Quinn has worked so tirelessly all week so Rachel is happy to hear that the pitch was a success. Though she has no interest in the sort of work Quinn does, she still delights in Quinn's accomplishments.

"How about you? How was your day?"

"My day-" but before she can finish, her phone chimes from her purse.

"Oh my gosh, I am so sorry. The darn thing was on silent all night and now…at the worst time…" There is actually nothing in her purse aside from her phone, a note pad, a pen, and a few business cards, so she finds the device easily.

She has an email from Kurt and if this were an actual first date, she wouldn't check it. But since technically she's sitting at a table with her fiancée, she decides to chance it.

"I'm so sorry, this is from my manager, Kurt. I just need to make sure it's not urgent, is that alright?"

"Oh, you're fine. Please." Quinn sips her wine and watches on curiously as Rachel reads over the message. Rachel's face goes from confused to elated in a matter of seconds before she silencing the phone and placing it back into her purse.

"Good news, I take it?"

"Huh?" Rachel looks up at Quinn with a face splitting smile of confusion before realizing what she said. "Oh! Uh, yes actually! I have an audition for Monday at 8am!"

Quinn's face instantly reflects Rachel's excitement. "Wow! That's amazing, is this your first audition?" She asks, knowing very well that it isn't.

"No," she shakes her head, "But it is my first _closed_ audition. It's invite only so you either have to know the producer or know someone who does. And apparently, I do!" Rachel giggles and does a little dance in her chair. She can't help it. This is exactly what she's been waiting for and she feels very good about it.

"That's amazing Rachel! I am so happy for you!"

"Thanks baby!"

"Baby? Already? Well, you certainly move fast!"

Rachel smiles wider just before the waiter arrives with their steaming plates. "What can I say? I see something I want and I make it mine."

Before Quinn can reply, the food is placed in front of them.

"Is there anything else I can get for you ladies?"

"No thank you."

"Yes actually," they say simultaneously, making their waiter shift uncomfortably, unsure of who to listen to.

After a clear internal struggle, he turns towards Quinn, "Uh, yes miss?"

"Can I get two glasses from your best bottle of champagne please?"

"Well that would be our 2006 Cristal ma'am and unfortunately, it only comes by the bottle."

"Then I guess we'll have a whole bottle," she says without hesitation.

The waiter, Simon, looks surprised. Though this restaurant is luxurious, people must not buy the bottle very often because he looks very hesitant, as if he doesn't think she's serious. Which makes her wonder exactly how much a bottle costs. But regardless, this is a special occasion and it would certainly help with her nerves.

"Certainly miss, I'll bring a bottle right away."

She nods curtly before turning back to Rachel, who is looking as confused as ever.

"Umm, the wine was perfectly fine. I don't need champagne, especially knowing the prices here."

But Quinn will hear none of it, "No Rachel, you've got a serious audition coming up Monday and that's absolutely worth celebrating."

Simon returns with a bottle and when he removes the top, it fizzes out and onto his hand. He pours a glass for each of them and sits the bottle back on ice before departing.

Quinn raises her glass which prompts Rachel to do the same.

"To new beginnings?"

"To new beginnings," Rachel repeats before clinking her bottle gently against Quinn's.

"Dear sweet Barbra this is so good!" she says after taking a sip.

"Right?! We could've just ordered this for dinner!"

They share a laugh probably a little too loud for this quiet atmosphere, drawing a few onlookers, before going back to their meal. They eat in silence for a few minutes, just delighting in its deliciousness before Quinn finally speaks.

"You know, about what you said earlier? It seems that we're one in the same. When I see something I want, I too go get it. I make it mine."

Rachel looks up from her pasta, curious as to where Quinn is going with this. Her voice is soft, and there is a tinge of nervousness to it, though Rachel isn't sure what there is to be nervous about.

"I know we haven't known each other long," she says, her lips upturned into a small smirk as hazel eyes lock onto deep brown, "but I want you. And I couldn't bear the thought of anyone but me having you. So…Rachel…?"

"Berry." She fills in with an airy laugh, unsure of what's happening.

"Right. Rachel _Berry, _will you marry me?"

In that moment, she sees something move below her line of vision, so she breaks eye contact with Quinn to look down at the table and she finds a little light blue box wrapped with a white bow.

And instantly she is breathless. Because she knows that box and that bow. And she knows what this all means.

Months ago, one night in bed, they had discussed this. Engagement rings. But when they had talked it over, they had both agreed that engagement rings just weren't practical. Even Rachel, who was dying to show off a beautiful ring, had to admit that on their budget at the time, they couldn't afford something like that. And Quinn had agreed, deeming them expensive and unnecessary and not caring enough to even put her book down while they had the discussion.

And yet…without prompting, without prodding, Quinn has bought her a ring.

She honestly can't believe it.

But when Quinn opens the box to show off the 1 karat princess cut diamond ring, she is forced to believe. The ring has a solid stone in the middle with several smaller diamonds around the band and it is quite possibly the most beautiful thing she has ever seen, besides Quinn herself.

"Quinn…you..you didn't have to do this. We agreed, we weren't going to do engagement rings. You shouldn't have…," She can barely contain the emotion in her voice or the tears in her eyes.

"No, Rachel, I wanted to." She runs her fingers through her hair nervously. "The other day you came to work and watching those guys stare at you like that made me think about all the guys that probably try to come onto you all day long and I honestly…honestly just couldn't stand the thought. And so I thought..maybe if you had something, like a ring," she says nudging the box forward, "then you could just tell all those guys that you already belong to someone. And I don't mean that in a creepy, possessive way or anything I just…I just want the world to know that you're spoken for, you know?"

Quinn alternates between staring at the ring and Rachel's face, probably waiting for her to say something, but she is utterly speechless.

Maybe Quinn _shouldn't _have bought a ring but she is so glad that she has. Of course, they are doing this thing one way or the other. They don't _need_ rings and she doesn't _need_ to be reminded of how she's 'spoken for', but it's what she's always wanted. It's what she was most afraid of all those months ago and why they tentatively began this relationship in the first place: she was afraid of ending up with no one to belong to.

"I do," Rachel whispers, catching a tear before it can fall too far.

"Umm, that's actually for the alter. Right now all you have to do is say yes, Rach." Quinn is torn between slight amusement and a wreck of nervousness.

"Belong to you, I mean. I do." Rachel clarifies, eyes glistening with more unshed tears.

Quinn nods distractedly, feeling faint. She just needs Rachel to say yes and put the damn ring on and then she'll finally be able to breathe normally. When she sees Rachel wearing her ring, she'll finally feel whole.

"But also yes. _Yes_, I would love to marry you."

Quinn's face breaks into a grin the moment she hears the one magic word.

_Yes. She said yes. _

She shouldn't be surprised that Rachel said yes. Again. But still, what with their recent fighting and the slight separation, she was nervous. She wasn't entirely sure. Subconsciously, she viewed this as not only an opportunity to start over and start fresh but a chance for Rachel to end things before they got any worse. Quinn had feared the worst when picking out the ring. That Rachel would get cold feet, realize this wasn't for her, or tell herself that she could do better. It seemed that every relational fear, both legitimate and illegitimate, plagued Quinn from the time she had entered the Tiffany's jewelry shop until the time she handed over her card for the down payment.

But now that Rachel has said yes, she can rid her mind of those ridiculous thoughts.

Rachel has said yes and now nothing else matters.

"Um Quinn? Did you wanna…" She trails off, but lifts her left hand, wiggling her fingers around, so that Quinn gets the gist.

"Oh, yeah," she says shakily removing the ring from the box.

She takes Rachel's hand in her own, gently slipping the ring on her finger.

It fits perfectly and looks flawless on her hand. Rachel moves her hand around and occasionally it catches the light causing it to sparkle effortlessly.

"This is so beautiful baby. Seriously. Thank you."

Quinn simply nods, cheeks slightly tinted with a blush, before going back to her meal. Rachel does the same but can't help but steal glances at her left hand every few seconds. She seriously cannot wait to show off this ring to any and everyone who will listen.

They finish their meal in a comfortable silence, sharing another glass of champagne before requesting the check. When it arrives, Quinn reaches for it, but Rachel manages to beat her to it.

"No, Rach. This is on me." She digs around in her purse to pull out her wallet and her credit card, but Rachel takes two hundreds and a few twenties from her own wallet and before Quinn can even ask why she has so much cash on her, Rachel is grabbing her hand and the champagne bottle and leading them towards the door.

"Rach, what's the hurry? What's wrong?" This is all so sudden that Quinn worries if something went wrong without her knowledge.

Quinn goes to ask again if anything is wrong when Rachel presses her lips tightly to Quinn's. She kisses her fiercely, wrapping her arms around her neck and opening her mouth almost immediately to let her tongue explore Quinn's. Quinn moans into the kiss and grants Rachel entrance without question.

If Quinn had known this would be the result of doing so, she would've bought a ring for Rachel months ago.

After a few minutes, Rachel pulls away quickly and backs nearly a foot away from Quinn.

"Rachel Barbra Berry," she gasps in mock surprise, "…I didn't take you for the type to kiss on the first date," Quinn smirks at her, reaching out to pull her back in, but Rachel maintains her distance.

"Oh Quinn, I'm not. But what can I say?" she closes the distance between them and leans forward to whisper in Quinn's ear, "I just had taste of you."

"And did it satisfy your thirst?" Quinn asks, breathless. Rachel is rarely ever this bold.

"No, in fact, it only made things worse," she licks the shell of Quinn's ear gently before continuing, "My mouth is just so dry. Perhaps you have something _wet_ for me back at your place?"

With the way Rachel says the word wet and the way her warm breath is hitting Quinn's face, it's a miracle that she doesn't faint, but Rachel's hands steady her.

And fortunately, because Quinn doesn't think she can hold on any longer, their limousine pulls to the front of the restaurant and the driver opens the back door rapidly. She allows Rachel to climb in first and then proceeds to follow, but the driver stops her.

"Where to now, Miss Fabray? The night is young."

"Home. No stops. No scenic routes. Just take us home."

She doesn't mean to snap at him but Rachel looks like she just walked out of a dirty MTV music video and she's wearing Quinn's ring and she's kissing her like she wants to do much more than kiss.

So fuck the young night.

* * *

They burst through the doors of her apartment in a frenzy. Her lips are pressed against Rachel's and her hands haven't left her body once since they entered the limo half an hour ago.

Quinn walks her to the bedroom, working hard to keep one eye open to ensure their safety.

When they finally get to the bedroom, Rachel reluctantly pushes her away, "One second baby. I just have to use the restroom so badly."

Quinn groans impatiently, but she nods anyway and watches as Rachel disappears into the bathroom quickly.

She wants this so bad that she can feel her whole body pulsing. At this point, Rachel would barely need to touch her for her to cum, but she is most looking forward to that part. The touching and the kissing and feeling Rachel come undone beneath her. She cannot wait to experience that. But when Quinn takes her phone from her purse to put it on the charger, she realizes that Rachel has been in the bathroom for a few minutes.

She wants to knock, beg her to come out, and then push her to the edge until it is Rachel who is begging to cum. But she doesn't want to rush her so she just lays back on the bed and waits somewhat patiently.

On the other side of the bathroom door, Rachel knows she has been in the bathroom for far too long. But as she was washing her hands, she made the mistake of looking at her reflection in the mirror.

What she sees makes her second guess the way the night is headed. She wants more than anything to lay Quinn down on their bed and explore each and every delicate curve, but eventually Quinn would want to do the same to her and she is unsure if she is ready for that.

She's unaware of how much time passes, but the next thing she hears is a light knock on the door.

"Hey babe. It's..it's been a few minutes. You okay?" Quinn knows it's an awful thought, but she hopes to God she hasn't gotten sick or something. She is way too turned on now to give this up now.

"Yeah I-" Rachel says instinctively but then stops herself. She is silent for a moment. No, she is not okay…not at all, but how does she explain everything in her head to a fiancée with a flawless body and endless amounts of self-confidence.

When Quinn hears nothing to finish the sentence to reassure her that Rachel is fine, she decides to just enter, albeit uninvited. She walks in to find her leaning over the counter, cheeks flushed, lips bruised, and lipstick smudged and she feels a surge of hunger flow through her body.

"Rachel, you are killing me right now."

Rachel looks up at her and again Quinn loses all ability to think properly. Her breath catches in her throat and she barely manages to get out 2 words.

"Turn around."

Her voice is raspier than usual. It's a tone Rachel has never heard in her life, but it is the sexiest thing to reach her ears in quite some time. Rachel turns slowly and when she does, she's faced with the view of them in the mirror.

Quinn's lips are on her neck in an instant, painfully hot and slow, but the only thing hotter than feeling it is seeing it. Quinn's hands encircle her waist and clasp together around her stomach to pull her closer. She moans unexpectedly at being pressed flush against Quinn's front. She can feel the heat radiating from their bodies and smell the scent of Quinn's perfume and it's all driving her insane.

"You are so so beautiful."

As always, Rachel's first response when someone compliments her is to shake her head. "No, I'm really not, it's just the make-up and stuff."

Quinn says nothing for a moment. But then her hands leave Rachel's waist and she hears the audible sigh of frustration from her. But her hands move instead to the knot tied behind Rachel's neck that is keeping this dress in place.

"Rachel, look at me," she commands softly as she uses deft fingers to quickly untie the knot.

When they finally make eye contact in the mirror, Rachel thinks she might pass out. Quinn has never looked at her this way before, so she has no clue what this face is. Quinn's pupils are dilated. Her hair is a little tousled from laying on the bed waiting, but it's still perfect, as is her light make up. She is the most beautiful woman Rachel has ever seen.

Quinn finally finishes untying the dress and slowly lets it fall away, immediately loosening the dress. Rachel's first instinct is to quickly place her arms over her chest so that the dress will still cover her unmentionables while allowing Quinn more access to her neck, but it seems that Quinn has other plans.

"Put your arms down, Rach. Let me see you," Quinn whispers softly in her ear and it makes this new high heeled, tight dress wearing Rachel want to drop every piece of clothing on the floor and strut for her, but the real Rachel, filled with a lifetime of insecurities, holds tightly to the dress.

"There's nothing to see," She says looking down at her own body and she is reminded yet again by her own mind that though she has changed her outward appearance, her body is still the same unimpressive thing that it always has been.

And though she hates to, she suspects that though Quinn may be interested in her now, it's only because of her new appearance. It's the dresses and the heels that make Quinn want her, not Rachel as she is. Up until this week, they had made a few advancements in their physical intimacy, but nothing so bold as this. Until Rachel's hair was styled with mousse and her eye lashes seemed long enough to cause a windstorm. Quinn hadn't been this forward until she showed up to her job in what she thought of as hooker heels. Quinn hadn't asked her out on a real date until she had seen how beautiful she _could_ be.

And though she's trying not to worry that all of this is just a product of this 'new' Rachel, she worries that if it is, if Quinn is only so attentive because of how she looks on the outside, she'll be much less captivated by Rachel with none of these clothes on.

"Raaachel. Look at me," Quinn sings her name lightly in her ear and brings her back to the surface.

Because that's what Quinn does, she sees her drowning in her own insecurities and she brings her back. She saves her. And so it is no surprise when Quinn looks her in the eyes through the mirror and says firmly, "Stop it. Stop questioning whether or not you're pretty enough. Stop trying to convince yourself that the only beautiful thing about you is the clothes you're wearing or the way your hair is styled. Rachel, I have loved you through diapers and missing teeth and jeans with flowers stitched along the leg, and braces, and even that time your eye was swollen shut because we didn't know you had an aluminum foil allergy. And still here I am. I'm not going anywhere, Rach."

"But Quinn," she protests, "This is different. Of course you stuck by me through all that stuff, we were best friends, but now…now it's more than that…" She says apprehensively and Quinn nods so that Rachel knows she's not alone in her thinking.

_It's definitely more than that. _

"This isn't a few missing teeth or some awful clothing choices, this is…sex," she whispers.

Quinn laughs at her feeling the need to whisper conspiratorially and leans herself into Rachel's back even more, pushing her harder against the counter.

"Rachel, can you keep a secret?" She whispers back.

Rachel nods quickly, desperate to know. "Of course."

"I cannot wait to see you naked. I cannot wait to feel you on top of me and underneath me and all over me. And it's not because of the way you look tonight, I've wanted this for a while, but I didn't know how to bring it up. But this week, when you dropped by work, after you left, Josh and Roger had a million and one questions. They wanted to know how we met, and how we fell in love and all that typical stuff. But then Josh started talking about how sex with you must be the most earth shattering experience."

Rachel shivers at the thought of her and Quinn having sex.

"And though it was completely inappropriate and I refused to answer any more of their questions, I haven't been able to stop thinking about it all week long," She continues. "How it must feel to be inside of you, to watch you come. To be able to do something those guys can only dream of."

Quinn leans forward again and kisses Rachel's neck again, beginning slowly before working her way up to her ear. She takes it in her mouth, sucking harshly before dragging her teeth away from it.

"Ahhh." Rachel moans lightly and takes one hand away from the dress in order to run her fingers through silky blond hair and pull her closer.

Quinn's hands are everywhere at once, running over her hips and her stomach until they reach her breasts that are still covered by one of Rachel's arms which is also holding up her dress.

"You don't have to hide yourself from me Rachel."

Quinn says it looking directly into the mirror but Rachel isn't looking. She is biting her lip and looking down at herself, self-conscious about what Quinn will say when she drops the dress. It's pretty clear that she isn't wearing a bra, as this dress in no way made that possible, but Quinn has never actually seen her with no bra on. Which is actually crazy after 22 years of friendship. The last time they had both seen each other naked was when they had no breasts in 4th grade. Since then, Quinn had felt comfortable changing in front of her and so she's seen Quinn's chest more than a handful of times but never the other way around.

"Look at me." Rachel immediately looks up at her command, which only serves to turn Quinn on more.

As they lock eyes, Quinn reaches for each side of the dress and pulls it downwards gently, struggling to free the dress from Rachel's grasp, but when she does, it falls to the floor with the softest thud.

Even still, Rachel keeps her arm over her now otherwise naked breasts and her eyes begin to flicker downwards, worrying over every little detail of her nearly naked body, but Quinn won't allow that.

"Keep your eyes on me, baby." The term of endearment serves to put her attention back onto Quinn through the mirror and when they lock eyes, everything else seems to fall away. All of the worry, all of the self-doubt, and even the arm that's covering her chest.

And just like that, the fire has been reignited. She watches Quinn's breath visibly get caught in her throat as her eyes take in the sight of Rachel naked from the waist up. Not that the bottom is well covered. She had chosen a pair of thin lace panties for the occasion, not because she was expecting this, but because the dress was tight so she needed something thin and less painful than a thong.

"Can I-" her voice sounds like she hasn't used it in months and so she clears her throat and tries again. "Can I touch you?" Quinn asks hesitantly, all the while looking her in the eyes.

"I think I'll die if you _don't_," Rachel breathes out eagerly. She watches as Quinn drags her hands up her stomach, dragging her nails along the skin, sending shivers through her body all the way down to her core.

After what feels like a lifetime, Quinn's hands find her breasts and she tentatively takes them into her hands, in awe of how soft they are. It's awkward at first, watching Quinn fondle her breasts, like she's never seen any before, but then Quinn squeezes firmly and both of Rachel's hands fall in front of her to steady herself on the counter. She's leaned over just slightly now which forces Quinn to lean over too still pressed tightly against her back as she kneads her breasts softly.

"Oh my god, Quinn. So good." That's all the encouragement she needs as she keeps her hands working Rachel's gorgeous tits, but begins to place soft kisses all over her neck and upper back.

"You are so beautiful," Quinn says in between hot, open kisses to her bare skin.

Rachel is on fire in every spot where Quinn touches or kisses her but all of the fire and all of the anticipation has accumulated in one place on her body that Quinn has yet to see or touch.

In a bold move, Rachel takes one of Quinn's hands in her own and eases it slowly down her body. Rachel stares at Quinn through the glass and waits for realization to hit. It finally happens when she slips both of their hands just past the top of her panties. When thin light hairs meet Quinn's fingertips, she immediately looks up and directly into Rachel's eyes that are flickering closed.

"Open your eyes. I want to look at you when I feel how wet you are." Rachel nearly comes on the spot at the thought, just as Quinn pushes her hand in further until she feels Rachel's slit, rubbing her gently and coating her own fingers with Rachel's essence.

The ability to watch this all unfold in the mirror only serves to make her even wetter and Quinn can feel it because she moans out into Rachel's ear, "Is this all for me?"

Rachel nods quickly because it's all she can do at this point.

"Turn around, love." Rachel again does as she's told and turns her front back towards Quinn. She takes a moment to appreciate Rachel's chest directly in front of her and places a few wet kisses on each nipple.

"Jesus Quinn, yes!" Rachel has never experienced anything like this before. Of course, she had one semi-serious boyfriend in high school whom she had lost her virginity to, but he hadn't been this passionate nor had it felt this good with him.

She's forced to come back to the present moment when Quinn's hand makes its way back down to her slick folds. She can feel Quinn's thin fingers rubbing gently, becoming familiar with her most intimate area.

She tilts her head up and lets out a rather loud moan. It is in this moment that she realizes that she cannot possibly be standing while Quinn does this. Her legs already feel like jello and her knees are already so weak that she knows the instant Quinn enters her, she will collapse onto the floor.

"Wait Quinn," she puts her hand on Quinn's shoulder.

"What's wrong?" She looks Rachel in the eye, desperate to know if she's done something wrong but Rachel leans forward to reassure her by connecting their lips heatedly.

"Nothing. Everything is _so _good." She says when they part, panting. "I just don't want our first time to be standing in the bathroom."

"Right. Yeah," Quinn nods and takes Rachel's hands kissing them softly before guiding her back into the bedroom.

Once they cross the threshold, there is an awkward tension surrounding them. The bathroom mirror made things hot and sexy, but now it's just the two of them standing in the center of the room with Rachel in her underwear and Quinn completely dressed.

Rachel decides to change that.

"Sit for me?"

Quinn sits quickly, eager to get back to where they were before.

Rachel comes over and straddles her lap carefully and Quinn loses her ability to breathe.

Rachel is almost completely naked on top of her pushing her dress up higher. She can feel the heat emanating from Rachel's hot pussy and she cannot wait to touch her again, but she knows that it's Rachel's turn to look and touch now.

When the dress comes over her head, leaving just her bra which Quinn removes on her own, too anxious to wait, Rachel stares down at Quinn's torso.

Her perky breasts. Her taut abs, so hard and soft at the same time. She runs her hands over them gently, never really having the opportunity to do so in such a way.

"Your abs are so hot," Rachel groans out as she runs her hands over Quinn's abdomen. Her touch is so light that it tickles in the sexiest way and Quinn shivers.

When Rachel pulls away, Quinn leans forward to kiss her but only gets pushed onto the bed so that she is lying flat on her back with Rachel still in her lap, sucking on her neck.

She runs her hands over Rachel's bare thighs and the smooth skin there excites her even more for what's to come.

"You're so beautiful," Rachel whispers leaning over Quinn's body. She works her way down, too slowly for Quinn's liking and finally, kneeling at the foot of the bed, she breathes a sigh over Quinn's underwear. They are black cotton panties that cover barely anything, but they must go.

Rachel reaches for them, but first looks up at Quinn. "And you're sure?" Quinn nods rapidly, more than ready for this. She lifts her hips, then her feet as Rachel slides them off of her.

And now she is lying on the bed completely bare. And she feels too naked for a moment as Rachel stares at her naked body.

"Dear god, you're gorgeous. I just-I just want to touch you everywhere," Rachel says timidly which makes Quinn laugh because now is not the time for jitters.

"Good because I want you to." And much like Rachel did earlier, Quinn leans forward to grab one of her hands, guiding it down to her exposed pussy. She just places it on her lips gently, hoping that Rachel will get the point.

She does. She begins running small circles around her clit and Quinn's back arches off of the bed immediately.

"Fuuuck."

Though Rachel typically doesn't approve of expletives, the sound of sheer pleasure falling from Quinn's lips encourages her to keep doing what she's doing. Except this time, she continues to play with her clit while leaning forward and kissing Quinn, hard.

They are a mess of teeth and tongues and Quinn wants to tell her to slow down, that they're in no hurry, but at the same time she is aching for more. She is dying for Rachel to slip her fingers inside.

"I'm so wet for you, baby," Quinn breathes out and Rachel feels it as she spreads Quinn's wetness on all of her fingers, preparing to enter her.

"Quinn, I can't wait to be inside of you."

For Rachel, this is the dirtiest talk she's ever partaken in and she almost feels bad about it, except for the fact that Quinn is panting and writhing underneath her and so she can't bring herself to feel a sense of shame.

"Jesus Rachel! Please! I just need it so so bad baby," Quinn whines, clearly on the brink of dying.

The sound of Quinn begging only fuels her and from there Rachel needs no further instruction. She slowly inserts two fingers into her and watches as Quinn's mouth opens to let out a silent moan.

"Sweet Barbra, you're so warm and tight." She knows that Quinn is no virgin but she is surprised to find that she is so tight around her fingers. She's also surprised at just how sexy this is, being inside of another woman. On a few occasions, she has touched herself using her own fingers, but being inside of Quinn is 20 times better. Easily.

She can barely move but, at this point, Rachel probably could just sit here unmoving while Quinn thrust herself onto her fingers eagerly. But she begins to move gently, giving Quinn none of the satisfaction she's looking for.

"Harder Rach. You gotta fuck me harder."

Quinn's eyes are closed. Her hair is tousled. Her mouth is wide open and Rachel watches as her pink tongue slips out to lick her lips and Rachel is inspired.

She cautiously adds another finger, keeping an eye on Quinn to make sure that this is still good and finds that she is somehow in even more ecstasy.

"Oh my god! So good!" Rachel picks up her speed, pumping in three fingers and kissing from her nipples up to her neck.

"You are so fucking sexy Quinn." She almost apologizes to the universe for her foul language, but honestly, there is no other way to describe how Quinn looks right now. How glorious she smells and sounds.

She feels Quinn tighten around her and shiver. She has an idea why, but decides to test her theory.

"I love being inside of you, feeling you tighten around me." Quinn's back arches off the bed and her nails find a spot on Rachel's back to dig into.

_So Quinn Fabray loves dirty talk. _

It's not something that Rachel is necessarily familiar with, but she can certainly play the part.

"Shit Quinn. That feels so good."

"Faster Rach. I'm so close."

She thrusts harder, her palm slapping against Quinn's clit, getting deeper every time.

"So close. So close." Quinn pants, squeezing her own breasts trying to relieve the building ache.

"Cum for me Quinn, all over my fingers."

Hearing Rachel talk like this is all it takes for Quinn to completely come undone. It seems like it has been forever since she's orgasmed from something besides her own hand and she cums more in this moment than she ever has in her life.

"Oh my god, fuck Rach, I'm cumming. Don't stop, don't stop."

Rachel has absolutely no intention of stopping as she watches Quinn thrash around her, scratching her harder, surely leaving permanent marks. She can feel the moisture coating her hand and it turns her on even more, making her thrust slowly while Quinn rides out her orgasm.

Just as she's coming down from her euphoric high, Rachel slowly takes her fingers out and brings them up to her mouth, sucking them tentatively having never done such a thing, but she moans out at the taste. She's never done anything so dirty in her life, but naked Quinn is bringing out the worst in her.

"You taste so sweet, Quinn. Want some?" She asks holding her soaked fingers out to Quinn.

She nods, eager to taste, but she also has other plans. She scoots up towards the head of the bed and beckons Rachel with a crook of her finger.

"Come here."

Rachel smiles eagerly and slowly crawls to Quinn.

"I definitely want a taste. But it's _you _that I'm hungry for," she says as Rachel reaches her, settling on either side of Quinn's leg so that they're limbs are entangled.

Rachel thrusts against her leg and leans down to kiss her. But Quinn swiftly turns her head so that Rachel's lips connect with her cheek instead. "I didn't mean a taste of your lips Rachel."

She grabs Rachel's hips and with little effort she flips Rachel onto her back. Rachel lets out a breathy laugh, barely able to control her excitement.

Quinn leans forward yet again, kissing her at a frenzied pace, with hands running over her nipples, squeezing roughly.

She works her way down Rachel's body slowly, licking and teasing her way past her stomach and belly button, down to the hem of her lace panties.

She can smell Rachel's arousal and she takes a moment to just breathe her in.

"You smell so good." She hooks her fingers around the thin material and pulls slowly, unveiling Rachel's soaking wet pussy.

She nearly comes at just the sight, but she controls herself and remembers this is Rachel's moment. This is an opportunity to show everything she's feeling for Rachel in the only way possible right now. She is determined to blow Rachel's mind and exceed her expectations of what sex should be like. She is determined to put the first and only guy Rachel has ever been with to shame.

She blows warm air onto her pussy lips and Rachel's hips immediately jump off of the bed, nearly knocking Quinn in the head.

"Calm down baby," she says using her own hands to hold Rachel down, "Just relax and let me take care of you."

Rachel barely has a moment to think before she feels her warm wet tongue licking up her folds to her clit, which Quinn delicately sucks for a moment.

"Shit! That's so-fuck!"

Quinn looks up in surprise because though she suspected that Rachel would be vocal in bed, she certainly didn't think she would use such foul language. But one thing Quinn has realized in the last 20 minutes is that she loves hearing Rachel talk dirty so there is no way she's going to comment on it.

She goes back to sucking on the bud, forcing it from its hood, and immediately she feels Rachel's hands in her hair, pulling roughly.

"Quinn, more. I need more." Though Quinn is a little embarrassed to admit it, Rachel pulling her hair and pushing her head down further only serves to turn her on.

She sucks harshly one last time before stopping to blow on her clit then moving her tongue towards her entrance.

"Lick me, Quinn. I need it. I need you."

Quinn's heart skips a beat hearing her say those words and she dives in, eager to please her lover.

Rachel's pussy is red and swollen with want, inviting her in and she slowly slips her tongue inside of Rachel, listening to her moan below her.

Her hips jerk wildly, still partially held down by Quinn's hands, as Quinn darts her tongue in and out of her tight hole.

"Holy Barbra! This is so fucking good! Your tongue feels so hot! I can't even describe to you how good this is!"

Even in bed, Rachel is a talker. But it only forces Quinn to work harder. She wants Rachel speechless. Hell, breathless even.

She removes one hand from Rachel's hip to rub her clit furiously as she continues to fuck her with her tongue.

"Oh my god, yes, yes, I'm almost there."

She's still talking. Until Quinn finally knows what will shut her up. She removes her hand from Rachel's clit and moves it down to her entrance, guiding two fingers in almost roughly.

"Aghhhhhh—fuuuuu-"Rachel arches off the bed at once. Her hands are reaching out grabbing onto the sheets as if she's afraid she'll float away.

Quinn feels her muscles tighten around her fingers, which only makes her continue licking her slit vigorously.

"Y-Ye-I'm cu—Aggghhhhh! Quiiiiiin!"

Nothing sounds sweeter than the sound of her own name on Rachel's lips as she cums. Her hand is soaked with her juices and she laps up Rachel's cum eagerly, desperate to taste her on her tongue.

"You taste so fucking good baby." Rachel trembles again at the words.

When she finally comes down, Quinn makes her way up her body, stopping at her lips, kissing her sweetly.

They both take a few minutes to recuperate, breathing heavily as they settle under the sheets.

"This is so weird," Rachel says after a moment, still out of breath.

"The fact that we just had sex?" Quinn asks, mildly offended.

"No! Dear god, no! I meant tasting myself…on you." Quinn nods in agreementwsaq2saw, realizing it is kind of weird to have her best friends cum smeared across her lips.

"No, but the sex was… was," Rachel motions wildly with her hands much to Quinn's confusion, but at the same time, she gets it.

That was so unlike them. So uncharacteristic for them, to just rip each other's clothes off and go for it.

They agreed to have a talk when they thought they were ready. They were going to map things out and discuss things thoroughly before going further.

But Quinn knows that they would've waited forever to have that conversation.

_This was much better_, she reasons.

She lays flat on her back as Rachel cuddles up to her side and drapes a leg over hers. She can feel the heat still emanating from her and the slick wetness coating her thighs and she sighs into Rachel's hair, already looking forward to doing this again.

She closes her eyes, positively exhausted, and just as she drifts off she thinks she hears Rachel talking.

"What are you doing to me, Quinn?" But she floats into unconsciousness before she can respond.

* * *

"Okay, I literally have ingredients to make s'mores and that's about it…"

"Seriously?"

"Seriously. I told you, this whole week, I've been working on that project at work so I've literally been eating breakfast, lunch, and dinner there."

Quinn sighs as she pulls out the organic graham crackers that are very near expiration.

Her hair is a mess and Rachel blushes knowing she's to blame for that. But her skin is glowing and the smile on her face has been a permanent fixture since they woke from their nap.

"Wait…how is it possible that you got a 5% raise and yet you still have no groceries?!" Rachel asks incredulously.

Quinn approaches her after putting the marshmallows in the microwave, placing her hands on either side of Rachel. "Baby, do you even know what 5% of 100,000 is?"

Rachel squints hard and tries to figure out if that's a lot of money. She's always been awful at math. Though she will take the secret to her grave, Quinn has been doing her math homework since 10th grade.

Quinn laughs lightly and leans up to kiss her nose. "It's about $5,000 Rachel."

Her eyes bulge out of her head when she hears that. "Wait! If you made $5,000 this week on top of your actual salary, then why are we having s'mores for dinner?!"

"Um first of all, we had _dinner _at the fanciest place in Manhattan, this is just a late night snack. And second, I have no real food because I have no one around to do my grocery shopping for me!"

She means it jokingly, but immediately after saying it, the room gets a little tense as they both understand the implications of what's been said.

Rachel is in charge of grocery shopping. Quinn has no groceries because Rachel left.

Rachel stares at a random space on the robe she's wearing, trying to think of something to say. Trying to decide what she wants to do.

On the one hand, they've only been apart for about 2 weeks. Rachel is enjoying living on her own, as she has never done so before. She enjoys the freedom that comes from being a real, independent adult.

But on the other hand, she can't realistically continue to stay in a hotel much longer. It's really starting to get expensive for her. Well….for them actually, as they now share a bank account. Plus, she misses Quinn. More than she thought she would. Living together for all of those months had really gotten her used to Quinn's presence. She's used to sharing space with Quinn and falling asleep next to her and having someone to talk to even about the littlest things. And, as lame as it sounds, without Quinn around, life just isn't as fun. Sure, she's only a phone call away, but now a phone call doesn't seem to be enough. They've probably spoken every night since they talked everything through, but even still, she misses knowing Quinn is just an arm's length away. She misses the home cooked meals and sneaking kisses whenever she wants. She misses the hugs and the smiles and the laughter. She misses it all.

The silence eventually drags on too long for Quinn's liking.

"I'm sorry for saying it like that. I didn't mean for it to sound so accusatory."

But Rachel shakes her head, not at all upset. "No, I'm not mad or anything. In fact, I was just thinking…maybe I was wrong." She sighs, still trying to get her own thoughts in order.

She thinks that Quinn will offer some sort of snarky, sarcastic comment about how Rachel is never wrong, but she just waits patiently, stroking her thumb on Rachel's bare thighs.

"Maybe I was wrong to think that I needed a place that was ours in order to feel at home."

"No, Rach, I get why you left and I respect your reasons."

"Yeah and all of my points are still valid," Quinn playfully rolls her eyes at this, "but Quinn, this time without you has been…great…but lonely. And the only time I ever felt truly happy is when we were together or talking on the phone or something."

Quinn is overjoyed to hear this but she's so confused.

"What are you saying, Rachel?"

"I'm saying that… _you're _home Quinn." She gestures around her. "I could dress this place up in pictures. I could pick the furniture and decide what goes where and it still wouldn't matter if I didn't get to come home to you at the end of the day, you know? Now, of course, we still have a myriad of things to work on, but I'm just really ready to come home. To you."

Quinn has to take a few deep breaths to keep herself from crying. "Are you sure, Rach? Because I know I messed up and—"

"No, I don't want to be away from you anymore Quinn. Even though I didn't mean for it to be, this distance was like a punishment. For both of us."

She is so relieved. This is what Quinn wanted. She wanted Rachel home with her again. Yet somehow, she still feels unsatisfied.

"Rachel, you don't even know how happy I am about all of this. Seriously…but I-I think I still want to move. You know, you made a good point before. I do think it'll be easier to feel like co-owners of the life we're building if we build it together. Besides, I took the liberty of weeding out apartments and I found one I think you're really going to like."

"You what?" Rachel asks quietly.

"Don't be mad, Rach," Quinn starts, "I just wanted to check out the places first that I thought were within our budget. I know how…precise you can be and I just-"

Rachel's lips are pressed tightly against her own and she is lost. In her scent and her love and her lust.

Before now, the kisses were passionate but tame. However, now there is nothing to hold them back. Nothing to keep them in check. They've already done the thing they were most hesitant to do.

Rachel's hands are in her hair. She is grabbing at the sheets around Rachel's body and pulling, eager to have nothing separating their skin.

"Is it awful that I want you again?" Rachel asks as she pulls away, breathless.

"No because I was thinking the exact same thing," Quinn laughs, laying her head in Rachel's lap tiredly as she strokes her hair.

"If I had known how amazing it would be, I would've proposed doing this years ago!"

Quinn nods in agreement and urges herself to pull away to retrieve their marshmallows from the microwave. She grabs the plate and a bottle of water and motions to Rachel that they're headed back to bed.

"It's probably best we didn't know. I wouldn't have gotten any work done in college."

Rachel laughs and hops down off the counter to follow.

"Hmm, that looks delicious! But I can only have one." Rachel says as she falls back onto the bed.

"Seriously?! I made enough for like 5 each. You love this stuff."

"Yeah, but Santana has literally been kicking my ass with these workouts. She would murder me if she knew I was eating this at all."

"I don't get why you need her anyway," Quinn comments, sitting the plates on the bed before climbing onto the bed. "You're in perfect shape."

"Well, in her defense, she really has improved my stamina. I ran five miles yesterday without stopping so I was happy about that." Rachel says with a frown as she munches on a graham cracker.

"Even more of a reason to reward yourself!"

"You don't know Santana. She's…strict. She'll yell for like 20 minutes if she finds out."

"Yell about what?! You're healthy, you're improving every day, what's there to be mad about?"

"Everything!" Rachel snaps. "How short I am, how fat I am, how gross I look, anything and everything Quinn. She literally…she finds the smallest things and she just…" She doesn't know how to describe it. She doesn't know how to explain to Quinn who Santana is. But Quinn needs no explanation. She understands.

In an instant, she understands perfectly who Santana is.

She's the sort of person that would've bullied Rachel in high school. She would've made her feel foolish for her clothing and her Broadway dreams and she would've ruined Rachel's self-esteem without a second thought. And worse, for a moment there, Quinn probably would've been friends with someone like her. During her freshmen year, in a desperate attempt to fit in, she would've encouraged Santana and maybe even found her own Rachel to bully and push around. And if not for Rachel, she would still be that person. If Rachel had not been around to keep her grounded, she would've succumbed to the pressure to bully young, insecure girls into thinking that they themselves were never good or pretty or smart enough.

But Rachel _was_ around. And she had snapped Quinn out of her cycle of bad habits. She had shaped Quinn into the sort of person she is today and knowing how much Rachel hurt when she was bullied in high school, knowing firsthand just how often she came home in tears, Quinn refuses to stand idly by and watch as it happens again.

"Rach, you're beautiful. Like seriously drop-to-my-knees-and-praise-God-for-creating-you beautiful," she says looking directly at her. "Don't believe anything that Santana tells you because I can assure you, none of it's true."

Rachel nods, looking down at the plate of food. "I know…I know it's all just to motivate me. I know it's all to make me better. I just hate that she's so mean, you know? Some days, I feel like I'm right back in those stifling school hallways with those hateful people. But she's making me better. She is."

She doesn't know who Rachel is trying to convince more, herself or Quinn.

"Baby, don't make excuses for her. The way she treats you isn't okay. She's talking down to you and regardless of the end result, the end doesn't justify the means. You don't have to deal with that. She's _your_ employee you know?"

Rachel shakes her head adamantly. "No, she has a job to do and she's doing it, successfully. I can't fault her for her methods if they're working."

Quinn sighs to herself and decides to drop the issue. Rachel may not be willing to openly admit it, but this Santana Lopez is just another bully from high school that still has the power to take blows at her self-worth and just like in high school, Quinn decides she's going to have to deal with this one privately because Rachel never will.

"Well, I'll tell you one thing, I for one _love _your body. So keep up the hard work Ms. Berry."

Rachel blushes and picks up another graham cracker as Quinn scoots closer to her on the bed.

They sit in silence for a moment until Rachel can no longer stand it.

"Do you think…do you think we should talk about what happened?" Upon seeing Quinn's confused face, she clarifies, "What we did earlier?"

Quinn laughs loudly. "Sex, Rachel. We had sex and we're adults and the only people here so you can say it."

"I know I can say it," she rolls her eyes, "I just…It almost felt like we broke the rules or something. We agreed to talk it over when we were ready for that next step. Jumping right in wasn't exactly a part of the plan."

"No, it wasn't part of the plan, but that doesn't mean we did anything wrong. I mean…did you enjoy it?"

Rachel blushes, "Of course."

"Good, I did too. I think that's all that matters Rach. We don't regret anything and honestly…that needed to happen. We've been dancing around it for months."

Rachel realizes she's probably right. They've been flirting and touching and teasing for months and it really was starting to drive her insane.

"You're probably right." She bites into a marshmallow. "And you know what else we've been putting off for months?"

Quinn wags her eyebrows suggestively, thinking that their still talking about their newly burgeoning sex life.

"What else?"

"Where we're going to have this freaking wedding Quinn!"

_Nothing like wedding venue talk to kill the mood. _

"Well, I don't know Rach! I told you not to put all of your eggs in the Central Park basket! I mean, you really want to get married outdoors but there are just so few places willing to do in in February. It's crazy cold."

"I know, I know. But…I just love the thought of snow falling all around us while we're warm and toasty in a tent or something, you know?"

Quinn just shrugs. She really doesn't know. She doesn't know how she's supposed to stay warm in freezing weather. But she's come to realize that this isn't really her wedding. Which is fine by her anyway because she truly doesn't care. She just wants Rachel happy. She laughs to herself, finally understanding the phrase "A happy wife is a happy life".

They lay in silence for a few minutes before Quinn remembers something.

"So you said you had an audition Monday? What's the role?"

Rachel turns towards her, forgetting all about their lack of a venue for a wedding that supposed to be happening in less than 8 months.

"Yeah, okay so it's kind of weird because the audition doesn't come with a script. Kurt said the guy is looking for a highly specific character, but he thinks based on the description, I'm a perfect match. They'll probably ask me some questions and have me ad-lib a few lines, but other than that, I literally know nothing about it. Which is almost kind of exciting."

Quinn doesn't share her excitement at all. She doesn't get how walking in not knowing what the hell is going on is a good time, but she smiles and nods because that's what she always does. Because that's what Rachel needs: someone's love and support. And she's all too willing to offer it.

"That sounds great baby. I hope you get it. Whatever 'it' is."

"Me too," Rachel says dreamily, settling deeper into the pillows.

"I'm sleepy. You wore me out."

"Me too," Quinn says, taking one more marshmallow before moving the plate off of the bed.

She lifts the sheets and crawls in next to Rachel, finding a comfortable position to cuddle.

They lay again for a few minutes, with Quinn's arm wrapped securely around Rachel's waist, legs entangled in a fit of limbs, until Rachel speaks softly.

"I have a really really _really _good feeling about this audition Quinn. I feel like this could be it. My big break."

Quinn says nothing at first, having almost drifted off to sleep, but she leans in and kisses her forehead gently.

"I hope so, my love."

Rachel doesn't respond. She only cuddles deeper into Quinn's chest and closes her eyes.

Quinn wants to say something else. She wants to say a lot of things actually, but it would be of no use. Rachel is breathing steadily which means she is already on her way to sleep.

So Quinn just kisses her hair lightly and whispers once more, "My love."

**######**

**It goes without saying this is long overdue. I hope you all forgive me for how long this took. I finished up with classes, got tied up at work, then went on vacation out of the country, and though my goal was to update before leaving, as you can see, that didn't happen. Again, I apologize but I hope the length and content of the chapter made up for the long dry spell! Speaking of dry spell, I hope the smut wasn't a total disappointment, it's not my usual cup of tea. **

**Anyway, I'm back in the states now and so you can expect the usual updates. Next up is Bed of Lies, which I am about to work on right now! Thank you guys for sticking with me! I appreciate you! :D Until next time! **

**Title by Marvin Gaye **


	16. You Make My Dreams

**Pardon the change of scene, italics are the past and standard font is the present. It changes often so just watch out. **

* * *

If she's being perfectly honest, yes, she had fully anticipated getting that role. She didn't know what the audition process was going to consist of, nor did she even know what the script was about, but she had made up her mind that she was going to do everything she could to get the part.

Kurt had worked so hard to even get her the invite, as it was a closed audition, so she wasn't going to let him down.

She had walked in expecting to get the role, but never in a million years had she anticipated it going like _that_.

She impatiently sticks her key into the lock and opens the door to find a mostly quiet apartment, though her yelling disrupts that almost immediately.

"Quinn?! Quinn!" She puts the keys on the hook designated for her and throws her purse on the couch on the way to the bedroom.

"Quiiiin!"

As she crosses the threshold to their bedroom, she runs right into Quinn, who has a phone pressed to her ear and a concerned look on her face.

"Babe, what's wrong?"

"Nothing Quinn! For once, everything is absolutely right!"

Quinn immediately beams at her. "The audition went well? Did you get a call back already?"

"No Quinn…I got the part," she whispers, still in disbelief even after all the hours that she and Kurt spent talking with the producer and director as well as a few of her cast mates.

"What?" Quinn can hardly believe it.

Just this morning, she had kissed Rachel goodbye and wished her luck before hailing a cab and heading to work. That was less than 12 hours ago. How is it possible that in that time she had turned a simple audition into a secured role?

"You-you…what? How did this…what?!"

"They gave it to me. They literally just…" The joyful tears that she's been holding at bay all afternoon for fear of looking too much like an amateur, begin to fall in large drops down her cheeks.

Finally, in their silence, there is the faint sound of yelling and Quinn remembers that before Rachel stormed in, she had been on the phone.

"Oh gosh, sorry Annie! Look, Rachel just came home with the best news so I'll have to call you back."

Rachel doesn't hear Annie's reply, but Quinn just shakes her head and responds, "No I know, I know, I swear I will. Okay…okay Annie," Quinn rolls her eyes, "I love you too. Yeah, yeah, I'll tell her you love her too. _Okay, _byyyyyye." She quickly pulls the phone from her ear and shoves it in her pocket before pulling Rachel into the biggest hug.

Rachel, still in tears, holds her tight, possibly even too tight but Quinn never complains. She just squeezes her back.

"Baby…how did this happen? You just left for an audition this morning." Quinn's voice is muffled but Rachel hears it. She pulls away so that they can both breathe and Rachel takes a moment to catch her breath before explaining.

"You honestly won't believe it, Quinn. I hardly did myself," Rachel pushes past her to step further into the room and Quinn follows. She sits on the bed and Quinn throws herself down next to her.

"Try me, start from the beginning."

"Okay, so as you know, as of this morning, I had no idea what the script was. There was no excerpt for me to even practice with or a song required. I just had to show up. So I get there and I kid you not Quinn, there were already 53 people in front of me and at least 200 behind me. The highest number I saw someone with was 219, but who knows? It could've been way more. Anyway, so after people get called, you know how usually they walk back through the same door and you can see them and ask them how it went or what it was like?"

"Yeah, yeah," Quinn nods because that makes sense. She has never actually seen or experienced an audition so really she doesn't know firsthand what Rachel means but she gets the gist.

"This time Quinn, when people went into the room, they never came back. So there were just less and less of us in the room and we couldn't even ask anyone what sort of questions they asked or anything. So we all just sat there mildly freaking out. I will say, however, that closed auditions are wonderful. We waited in a room with couches and refreshments so that was a pleasant chance from just standing outside in a line for hours."

Quinn nods, knowing how much Rachel hated that part.

"So finally they call my number, I got there pretty early so I was 54. I go back and God, Quinn there must have been a dozen people in that room watching me, including one person I had seen ahead of me, but the rest I didn't recognize. So I'm standing on stage," Rachel stands to illustrate what all happens next, "and the producer comes up and introduces himself. His say his name is Riley Stanton and he's this super young, very gay man, but he seems nice. I only was able to speak to him for a few hours but I think we'll have a great working relationship."

Quinn rolls her eyes and gestures for her to continue the story along to the more important details.

"Oh right sorry, so anyway, he introduces himself and asks me a few questions about myself. Where I'm from, what I do for work, my favorite things to do in my free time. So I tell him…"

_"__Uhh," taken aback by the question, she needs to think for a moment._

_Where is she from? "I was born in Boston, Mr. Stanton." _

_"__No need for the official title, just call me Riley. Hmm, Boston? What, no accent?" He mimics a Bostonian accent when asking and she laughs a little, remembering all the crap she got from everyone else there for never really developing an accent._

_"__No, no accent. Sometimes there are a few words that come out funny, but neither of my parents were originally from Boston and so they didn't have accents either. So between growing up with them and singing lessons, I just never develop one." _

_Riley smiles and nods and though the lights are brightly shining in her face, she can tell that a few others in the group nod as well. _

_"__As far as what I do for work, I don't. I used to," she says quickly, in case that helps her in any way, "but my fiancée and I agreed that it'd be better to put all of my energy into this." _

_"__Fiancee? Wow!" He looks down at her hand and once again she thanks her lucky stars that Quinn gave her this gorgeous ring. _

_"__Would you mind coming closer? I'd love to see it better." _

_"__Pardon him, he has a slight obsession with rings," a new voice calls out from the crowd but the stage lights are too bright and so it's hard to tell who the voice belongs to. _

_"__Well maybe if you put one on me, I wouldn't have to stare at everyone else's," Riley quips back, approaching the slightly raised stage._

_A few people laugh and she wants to join in, but she doesn't know if it's appropriate, having just met them, so she just approaches the edge of the stage as he hops up and he takes her hand gently, admiring the rather large stones shimmering in the bright lights. _

_"__Oh my…someone must really love you," he says with a facetious smile._

_"__Oh, I have no doubt about it," she blushes deeply._

_They share a laugh, and when he finishes inspecting the ring, he steps off of the stage again to resume his seat. _

_"__So, what does your fiancée do then?" Another voice asks._

_"__Oh, she's an investment banker. But please don't ask me what that means. I still don't know." _

_She can't see their faces, but she immediately hears their small gasps. _

_"__She?" Another voice she hasn't heard yet. _

_Rachel swallows. _

_"__Yes, she," She says firmly, not willing to apologize for anything. "Her name is Quinn and she's an investment banker." _

_"__Really? Hmm…" _

_"__I certainly hope this won't be a problem," she says strongly with an edge to her voice. There's no way that these people could be homophobic. The producer seemed gayer than Kurt which was something she didn't even think possible and it sounded like he was dating the other mysterious gentleman. But even if they were, she wasn't going to hide Quinn away. The whole purpose of being together was to show people that she had someone. And even aside from that, she was proud to be with Quinn. Anyone would be._

_"__No, of course not Rachel. In fact, it only makes you more interesting. Now, if you don't mind me asking, how did you guys meet?_

_A smile instantly plays across Rachel's face. _

_"__We met the day I was born actually. We've known each other our entire lives. Our parents were good friends and we became neighbors when we were 5." _

_She hears a few people coo in adoration and she blushes._

_"__Wow, and what is that like? Falling in love with the girl next door?" _

_Rachel answers without thinking. She has been thinking for months of what she would say if and when these sorts of questions came up. _

_"__It was the easiest thing I've ever done. I didn't even realize I had fallen in love until it was too late." _

_"__Aww," Riley says, hand over his chest._

_"__And what's your favorite thing about her?" Another voice asks from the seats below._

_This question catches her a bit off guard. She's not sure what all this has to do with the audition, nor does she know why they care personally, but she bites her lip and tries to come up with a good answer, debating between something funny and something serious. _

_"__We've been living together for just a few months and I'll admit I'm not the neatest person that ever lived. I have many strong qualities, but I do tend to leave behind a thing or two wherever I go in the house." _

_Riley side glances at his nameless lover and they share a secret smile not meant for her eyes. _

_"__Quinn isn't a neat freak or anything, but she likes things to be tidy. She likes for things to go where they belong so it's easier to find them later. And I thought when I moved in, I would find her walking behind me with a broom sweeping up crumbs and a hamper for all the clothes I throw all over the place but…she doesn't touch them. She just leaves it. All of it. And she never asks me to move it either. She just lets me invade her space and she never complains. That's my favorite thing about her. She knows who I am and she loves me. She doesn't ask me to change, she just takes me as I am._"

_Riley nods again and leans over to speak into another person's ear. Not his lover, but a woman to his left that has been mostly silent. _

_The woman then stands and walks on stage next to Rachel. _

_"__Rachel, I want you to look at Sienn and pretend that she's Quinn." _

_Rachel turns towards her and finds that she looks nothing like Quinn. She has long, curly, untamed red hair, but she wears it well. Her eyes are gorgeous mix of grey and green and Rachel suspects that she may be Scottish, but when she opens her mouth, it turns out that she has quite a sexy French accent. _

_"__Hey." _

_"__Hi," Rachel says nervously. _

_"__I know it's weird and eccentric, but he wants us to just stare at each other for a minute. Just to get a feel for the vibe we give off," Sienn smirks at her. _

_Rachel being confused is an understatement. She definitely has never had an audition like this before and she wonders if this is just what closed auditions are like. But either way, if this is a test, she is determined to pass. _

_Her eye contact doesn't waiver as she and Sienn continue to look each other in the eyes. _

_"__Now lean forward and kiss her," Riley commands._

_Rachel's eyes widen for half a second before she remembers his previous instructions. _

_Pretend as though this woman is Quinn. How would she kiss Quinn?_

**_Like I'm never going to get another chance, _**_Rachel thinks as she leans forward and places a soft, tentative kiss on her lips. _

"Wait wait, you actually did it?! You really kissed her?" Quinn interrupts sounding both upset and incredulous.

Rachel laughs at the apparent jealousy.

"Baby, that's all a part of the job. Man or woman, I am going to have to probably kiss a lot of people. But remember," she approaches Quinn on the bed and stands in between her legs, draping her arms around her neck. "I'm thinking of you the whole time."

It's meant to be romantic but Quinn wrinkles her nose. "Rach, that's gross. Don't tell me you think of me while kissing someone else!" She pushes her away gently and Rachel worries for a moment that she's really upset so she leans down swiftly one more time.

"Love you!" She says quickly, giving Quinn a quick peck on the nose. When Quinn laughs hard enough to fall back onto the bed, she knows they're good.

"Now...back to the story! So…"

_The first thing she acknowledges is that Sienn is quite the kisser. They move together easily and remembering what she would do with Quinn, she brings her arms up to wrap themselves around Quinn's neck. Sienn places her hands on Rachel's waist, more hesitant than Rachel, but she grips her and pulls her a little closer. Rachel loses her footing for a moment and falls forward a little, giggling against Sienn's lips. _

_The giggling reminds her that she is playful with Quinn sometimes. _

_She pulls away slightly and just like Quinn would, Sienn leans forward to re-capture her lips. When Rachel leans back a little further, Sienn follows once more, this time her eyes open and sparkle with a playful mirth._

_"__Come back. I was rather enjoying myself," Sienn smiles widely at her and she bets that smile has made every woman swoon. _

_"__That's the problem." But not her. She already had someone at home to swoon over._

_"__Quinn is quite the lucky woman," Sienn whispers quietly._

_"__She knows," she quips, pulling away, not wanting this woman to get the wrong impression. _

_She admits, it is an awfully intimate way to meet someone for the first time, but that's no excuse. She barely knows this woman and she has no intention of kissing her again. _

_As she smooths her dress out, Riley hops onto the stage once more and approaches them. _

_"__Rachel, you are a natural wonder. Can you just do me one more favor?" _

_"__Sure," She just hopes it doesn't involve any more kissing. She can't explain kissing someone else twice to Quinn._

_"__I need you to hear me out. Now this part that you've auditioned for is the character Adele. She's just one character of six that has just recently come out of the closet. We experience 6 different stories at once and sort of watch as each character's life meshes with the others." _

_"__Like Valentine's Day meets Broadway," says the mysterious boyfriend. _

_Riley sighs as if this is a debate they've had before, "More or less, sure. I grew up with some friends in a small town and our coming out experience was a tough one and it wasn't until we moved here and met other gay people who were so comfortable in their own skin that we began to embrace our uniqueness. That's what we're trying to show. For so long, it seems like Broadway has been dominated by the gays, but so rarely do we see skillfully done productions really displaying the gay experience. That's what I want to show." _

_Rachel's jaw almost drops open. This is not at all what she expected. She expected a typical role where she sings and dances and that was it. Nothing out of the ordinary. But, honestly, what Riley is suggesting sounds much better than anything she has ever seen before. _

_Sure, she hasn't read a script but from what it sounds like, this is the sort of role that really separates good actresses from the greats. Something like this hasn't really been attempted on Broadway before, much like the idea of a green witch or a bunch of puppets singing and she imagines that as long as the cast is brilliant and the writing is fresh, this could be a huge hit. _

_"__That sounds amazing, Riley. I would love to take part in something like this." _

_Riley looks instantly relieved and lets out a giddy squeal._

_"__Rachel, you have no idea how happy you've made me. I am so happy to have you on board. Now," he claps his hands together loudly, "for now, we'll be in New York for a few more weeks as we cast the last few minor characters. Unfortunately, not everyone captured my heart the way you have so we're still doing some callbacks. But as soon as we're done, off to London we'll go. There at the West End, we've already committed to a six month run, which will be great-"_

_"__I'm sorry, what? I thought this…I thought this was for a Broadway show..that's what my agent, Kurt, told me." _

_Riley at once looks apologetic. _

_"__Well, it is Rachel. But you know how these things go. For now, we don't have the financial backing we need to get a run here in town. Even a small engagement would cost more than we'd ever make in sales because we're all so new to this. But don't worry, our goal is to get some traction in the U.K. and that will help us to garner funding here in the states. And like I said, it shouldn't be more than 6 months, a year tops." _

_She can't believe this. She should've known that it was too good to be true. It was impossible to waltz into an audition and get it on the spot. Unless the director was desperate. Unless the offer was so uninviting that he was offering it to anyone who was qualified just waiting for someone to take the unappealing bait. _

_But she couldn't take it. She couldn't say yes. Because she was engaged to Quinn. Though it seemed that their wedding was going to be pushed back a few months, she still couldn't just up and leave her. And even if they weren't together, even if they were still just friends, Rachel would never be able to do it. _

_Because Quinn didn't do it. Because when she had the chance four years ago to chase her dream, she passed it up to be with Rachel. _

_Quinn had been accepted to several colleges. And though her father had desperately wanted her to attend MIT, she had decided even before applying that it was too close to him and too far away from where Rachel would be. _

_So instead, Quinn had chosen Columbia University. Her father had allowed it because it was still an Ivy League school and from dorm to dorm it seemed to be only an hour away from NYADA. But that turned out not to be true. Traffic between the two schools turned out to be more like two hours. _

_They were optimistic at the start of the first year, but between academic obligations keeping Quinn busy and Rachel's general lack of subway prowess, they had only been able to see each other every few days and which was something they were wholly unaccustomed to. _

_And just as Rachel was wondering how they were going to survive 3 more years of what she considered a long distance friendship, Quinn had told her she applied to NYU and obviously been accepted. _

_Rachel had been awestruck. Sure, NYU and NYADA were just a 30 minute walk/12 minute drive and Rachel knew that because she often met students in coffee shops near NYADA that attended to NYU, but she had never even considered Quinn transferring to be an option. Not that NYU wasn't great, but it certainly wasn't Columbia. And for Quinn to just give that up? Just to be closer to her?_

_Quinn had insisted that it wasn't a big deal, but Rachel knew how much Columbia meant to her. When she had been accepted, she had cried tears of joy and celebrated for weeks, telling anyone who would listen because it was such a competitive school to get into. That had been Quinn's dream school, not MIT and certainly not NYU. _

_But at the end of freshmen year, she moved out of her dorm and into her reasonable sized one bedroom apartment like it was no big deal. Like she hadn't just given up the thing she had been wanting for so long. And when Rachel had asked on last time if she was sure, she had pulled Rachel into a hug and told her, "It's not like I quit school, Rach. I just traded one dream for another. Columbia was great. Being with you is better. No big deal."_

_Rachel didn't get it all those years ago, how someone could just give such a thing up for someone else? _

_But now, she understood. Surely this was a great opportunity and there was a chance that there would never be a script this progressive, but there would still be other offers. Kurt would find other great scripts. She wasn't throwing her dreams away. Just trading one dream for another. _

_She takes a deep breath and shakes her head. _

_"__Riley…I am so so sorry. You have to believe me when I say this is the opportunity of a lifetime. To work on a project like this __**and **__travel? It sounds amazing, but I…I have a fiancée at home that expects me home by 7 every night for dinner. I can't just up and leave her." _

_Riley frowns, "Well, surely she'll understand Rachel. I mean, we expect that this will be a hit as soon as it gets picked up, we just need to give it a few months. I mean, this is your dream right?" _

_"__Of course, but Quinn's my dream too. I-I can't leave her. I love her." _

_Riley appears to be speechless._

_"__Rachel," Sienn starts softly, "I'm sure your fiancée will understand. This is your dream. I'm sure she can live a few months without you if you just explain the opportunity to her. I have read this script and I'm telling you, you would be a perfect fit. Please, just ask her. She loves you. I'm sure she wouldn't want you to pass this up." Sienn implores her and she's tempted. She really is._

_But the answer is still going to have to be no._

_"__I can't. I'm so sorry. Quinn does love me and she would do anything to see me happy. Honestly, if I left for a few months, she'd probably still find a way to see every performance. But it wouldn't be fair to her. She's always helped me pursue my dreams, sometimes in lieu of her own. She's given up so much for me. And I've always let her. For once, I need to do the same for her." _

_Her voice is choked up and she is nearly in tears, but she doesn't want them to see her cry. _

_She quickly reaches out her hand, "Mr. Stanton, thank you so much for this audition. It has been a pleasure meeting you and I genuinely look forward to seeing the production when it's back in the states." _

_Riley is frozen for a minute before reaching out to take her hand, still stunned. _

_"__Uh, yes, of course. Thank you for coming. The uh…the doors are just over there." His other arm extends, pointing to a different door than the one she entered from, but he continues to stare at her as if she is a foreign creature. _

_Before anyone can say anything more, she lets go of his hand and quickly walks towards the door. _

_The moment she hears it slam behind her, she lets out a strained cry, finally letting her scalding tears fall as she leans against the brick wall. _

_Though she regrets nothing, she can't help but cry for the opportunity she has just let slip from her grasp. She had been waiting for someone to say just what he had, that she was just the person he was looking for in his show. Though admittedly, the audition was strange to say the least and not at all how she's ever been asked to audition before, she stood out to him and he had still chosen her._

_She lets a few more tears fall freely before drying her eyes and pushing off of the wall, preparing to head home. _

_She sighs. Quinn was going to be furious with her. _

_She's probably not even 20 feet away from the exit door when a voice yells her name. _

_"__Rachel! Rachel! Wait up!" _

_She turns to find Sienn's hair waving wildly behind her as she jogs to catch up with her. _

_Her brows furrow curiously. What more could this woman possibly have to say to her?_

_"__Sienn, I told you. I __**can't**__," she says firmly when the taller woman is finally standing next to her._

_But Sienn only shakes her head and smiles slyly, "No, I know. I heard. We all heard." She runs her fingers through her messy hair, taming it somewhat before continuing. "You know, there's a scene in the script were Adele's father comes to New York to find her. They haven't spoken in almost a year and he tells her that her mother is sick. She's dying. He asks her to 'quit this gay nonsense' and come home. He tells her she's breaking her mother's heart. And do you know what Adele says?" _

_Rachel shakes her head. Not only does she not know what she says, she has no idea what this has to do with anything. _

_"__She says 'I can't leave, dad. I love her.' And when you said that just now about Quinn…it gave me chills. It gave us all chills, Rachel."_

_Rachel shrugs her shoulders still not understanding. _

_"__Okaaay?" _

_Sienn's laughs at her obliviousness and leans down just slightly to ensure that Rachel gets it this time._

_"__You got the part Rachel." _

_"__I know that!" She huffs out, more than frustrated,"But I've told you Sienn-"_

_"__Rachel, I know his methods are batshit crazy, but he wasn't serious about all that stuff. We have the backing. We're going to be here in NY. Probably in Gershwin opening night. And we want you to play Adele."_

_"__What?" Was this some sort of sick joke?_

_Sienn laughs harder this time and throws her arm around Rachel's neck, guiding her back to the door._

_"__He has literally done this to like 30 girls that looked like they could've been the one. Every time he's offered them the part and told them all the info, they've freaked out and gotten all excited. And then immediately after he gives them some sort of awful excuse as to why he can no longer allow them to play Adele. He's literally been waiting for someone to say no. Waiting for someone to respond just like you did. Though I'm curious as to what he would've done if auditions had ended and we still had no one."_

_"__Are you serious? He's been doing this all morning?" That seems absurd to Rachel._

_"__Dead serious. It's actually been really awkward. At one point, the only excuse he could think of was that he had forgotten we already casted someone as Adele." Rachel can't help but find that a bit funny. _

_Sienn holds the door open for her and she walks back in, utterly confused. _

_This is probably the weirdest thing that's ever happened to her. _

_"__Raachel!" Riley whines out her name. "What a performance!" Everyone standing around him nods and agrees, telling her that she gave an excellent audition. _

_"__I'm serious Rachel. I have casted all five other characters making you the last of the main actors. And never before have I felt so confident about my decision. Hearing you talk about your fiancée and making the choice to stay with her is exactly what I want from you for this part. I believe your character is going to feel the most natural. I knew you were the Adele I pictured from the moment you walked in. So what do you say? Will you be our Adele?"_

_Sienn's right, his methods are insane. He might even be legitimately crazy. But this was her dream. And the only thing that made it better was that she didn't have to compromise one dream for another. She could have Broadway and Quinn and that was all she had ever wanted. _

_"__It would be an honor!" Her face splits in two as they all cheer loudly. All for her. _

_From seemingly nowhere, a bottle of champagne appears and glasses are passed around among the 10 or 11 of them. Riley goes to stand back on the stage, his boyfriend beside him, clutched tightly by his side._

_"__To a flawless cast and a long run on Broadway, baby!" Riley shouts loudly before raising his glass and tipping it upwards, downing the whole thing in one go. _

_Everyone raises their glass and does the same before hugging and patting each other on the back._

_After the excitement dies down a bit, they come over and introduce themselves one by one congratulating her on the role and sharing their role in the production. She thanks them each individually and tries her best to commit their names to memory. _

_When Sienn comes back over with her bottle to refill her glass, she leans towards her just slightly._

_"__I just wanted to thank you. I know half of that performance was me and you so…thanks." _

_"__No need to thank me.. I didn't really do much. You can't fake chemistry nor pretend like it doesn't exist when it obviously does." Sienn is staring her in the eyes as she says it, her own green orbs shining with humor and…something else._

_Rachel isn't sure what she means by that, but she's certain that it sounds like flirting. She'll be the first to admit she's awful at reading signs and signals, but the feeling in the pit of her stomach tells her that Sienn is in fact flirting. _

_So she does the first thing she can think of. _

_"__Right..well…I'd love for you to meet Quinn sometime." She says, very clearly trying to change the subject which only makes Sienn smile wider. _

_"__Yes, something tells me that meeting won't go well, but suuure." Sienn swirls her drink her in hand before taking a drink, never taking her eyes off of Rachel._

_She's probably right, after Quinn hears about how she got the part, she probably won't be fond of Sienn. But perhaps they won't have to see much of each other. _

_"__And what character do you play?" She asks taking a sip of the champagne. Not nearly as amazing as the Cristal they had the other night but still good._

_"__I thought it would've been obvious…I play your love interest. Iris." Rachel's face instantly falls and she uses that as her opportunity to add, "But don't worry Rachel, despite the character I play, I'm totally straight," her voice is full of humor and she winks before walking away to refill others' glasses. _

_Rachel rolls her eyes and can't help but question if that's even true. _

_And even if it were, not long ago, Rachel had thought of herself as strictly into men as well. And now here she was enjoying sex with Quinn more than she ever had with anyone. She flushes at the thought and then remembers that she needs to call Quinn to tell her this news. _

_"__Alright, alright! I'm going to go get rid of those poor unfortunate souls outside and when I get back, we'll all get to know each other a bit better," Riley exits through another random door and she goes to pull out her phone to call Quinn._

_"__So, Rachel," she looks up abruptly at…John, the boyfriend. "Tell us more about this fiancée!"_

_Everyone gathers around and looks her way and she becomes sufficiently distracted. The only thing she loves as much as talking to Quinn is talking __**about**__ Quinn. _

"Wow," Quinn says as Rachel finishes her story.

She just nods. They are both laying back on the bed now, staring up at the ceiling.

"Crazy. I know."

They sit in silence for a long time before Quinn turns on her side to face her.

"You know…you could've gone to London. Had the option really existed."

Rachel smiles over at her, knowing all along that Quinn would say that.

"I know. I could've gone to London and you would've found a way to do pillow talks on Skype despite the time difference. You would've still been there for opening night. You would've still been my biggest fan. But we made a commitment. I know this may not all be 100% real or whatever…but," Rachel swallows, unsure where she wants to go with this. "But right here, on Broadway and married to you is exactly where I want to be."

Rachel is too overcome with emotion and she has to look away, so she doesn't see Quinn lean forward. She only feels the soft press of her lips on her cheek. Quinn kisses her again, this time in the corner of her mouth. Then once more on the lips. The kiss is deep and heartfelt and though Quinn crawls on top of her for a better angle, it isn't sexual. It is laced with so much emotion. It is as if Quinn is attempting to fill her with all the love she has and Rachel's heart is nearly full from it. She lifts her hands to move the hair from Quinn's face and it makes Quinn moan.

Quinn pulls away slowly, not wanting things to get out of hand, but then quickly comes back to kiss Rachel on the nose. "Love you!" She says, looking directly into her eyes. "And I'm so proud of you, baby."

Rachel beams and leans up once again to kiss her. "Thank you. And, you know…I was thinking maybe we could engage in some Rachel Berry is going to be on Broadway sex…" Rachel wags her eyebrows and Quinn can't help but get a little excited. Her body trembles at the thought of being naked with Rachel again, knowing that it was the most intense, most electric feeling.

"I would love to…and believe me, the second we get home, I am going to congratulate you from head to toe," Quinn says punctuating each word with a kiss to her neck, "But right now, I want you to put on something sexy, do your hair and your makeup. I'm calling Sam, Britt, Kurt, and Blaine and we are going out."

Quinn pushes herself off of Rachel and off of the bed, grabbing her phone and approaching her closet to find something to wear.

She puts the phone up to her ear and waits until there's an answer. "Sam! You busy?"

Rachel just stares adoringly at her, watching her flip through designer dresses as she talks to Sam.

"Well, ditch them! Tell Britt we're all getting dressed up to go out." Quinn grabs a black flowy dress that leaves nothing to the imagination and quirks her eyebrows at Rachel, waiting for her approval.

She licks her lips and nods, excited to see Quinn all dressed up, just for her.

"No it has to be tonight Sam!" Sam must be putting up a fight.

"Why?" She turns towards Rachel as she approaches the bed and they make eye contact. Staring directly at her, as if not on the phone at all, she responds. "Because the girl I'm marrying just got her big break on Broadway and I couldn't be happier for her."

Rachel's eyes immediately fill with unshed tears.

"Great, see you at 5 for dinner."

She hangs up with him and lays her dress on the bed beside Rachel.

"Come on babe, we only have an hour before we need to leave and you take a lifetime getting ready."

She prepares to head towards the bathroom but Rachel catches her hand.

"Come here Quinn."

But she only laughs, "Noooo, Rach, we don't have time."

"I just want to cuddle. I want to share this moment with just you for a second."

Quinn sighs. They don't have time for this, but she also is never one to turn down cuddling. She scrawls onto the bed and into Rachel's waiting arms.

She rarely plays the little spoon, but she lets Rachel snuggle up behind her and doesn't complain.

They lay there in silence briefly until Quinn speaks.

"It looks like you were right."

"Hmm?" Rachel mumbles into her neck.

"You said you had a good feeling about this audition. You said this could be it. And you were right."

Rachel says nothing, but does pull her a little closer, kissing her clothed shoulder.

"You know…this is huge, right? This is going to change everything. Long, early days. Late nights. You ready for all of that?"

Immediately after asking, Quinn realizes what a silly question that is. Of course Rachel is ready. She had been born ready to be on stage. And has never had a problem saying so.

But the answer she receives surprises her.

"With you by my side, Quinn, I'm ready for anything."

Her own heart skips a beat, as if to echo the sentiment. It was true. With Rachel, she would go anywhere. Do anything.

"Just promise me you'll still love me when I'm a sleep deprived psycho?" Rachel laughs but there is a hint of seriousness to her tone. She knows just how busy it is preparing to put on a show. How many hours each day go into getting a production ready.

"I'll love you always," Quinn whispers into the air and Rachel is at peace.

She has finally found it. Her dream.

**###**

**Sorry again for the wait. Chapters are getting a little harder to write but I'm going as fast as I can! Anyway, I hope you enjoyed! If so, review please. If not, still review! Thank you for all of the favorites, follows, reviews, and even PM's while I've been away writing! I adore you guys! **

**Until next time! :) **

**Title by Hall &amp; Oates **


	17. I Don't Wanna Love Somebody Else

Please be aware that section breaks in this particular chapter may contain changing points of view.

* * *

"Sooo…"

"Sooooo?"

Rachel releases a breath as she extends her body in a downward facing dog position.

"Oh come on Rach, don't play dumb."

"Britt, I'm not, I legitimately have no clue what you're talking about."

Brittany sighs and raises her arms far above her head, "I'm talking about the other night. You and Quinn all cuddled up like there was no one else around. You guys couldn't take your eyes off of each other."

Rachel can't help but smile as she inhales and she pulls herself back up to change positions.

"So?"

"Sooo what happened to just pretending to be in love? You guys looked pretty serious to me. She was looking at you the way Sam looks at me."

Rachel thinks about that as she places all of her weight on one arm and extends her other arm towards the ceiling of Brittany's apartment.

She thinks back to how Quinn kept a constant grip around her waist and kissed her lips or her cheek or her neck periodically, just because. They had both been affectionate all night long, never once letting the other out of their sight and neither had ever once complained.

She thinks about how Quinn showered her with compliments all evening. Every time Rachel's drink got low, she went to refill it. When Rachel said she wanted to dance, Quinn left her food at the table and obliged. It was as though Rachel's wish had been Quinn's command. And when they got home, all Rachel had to whisper into the night was "I want you" and Quinn was at once naked in front of her.

It had been the sort of night that fantasies were made of. Sex with Quinn was so so good and always left her craving more. It was soft and sweet but also passionate and intense. And when they had finally finished making love, Quinn had whispered it into the air.

She loved Rachel.

And though Rachel doesn't want to get her hopes up, the more she allows herself to think about it, the more likely it seems that Quinn's love may go beyond friendship.

Because Brittany is right. Nothing about Quinn seems fake or rehearsed these days. She kisses her like she means it, like she may never get the chance to do it again. She hugs her like it's the best part of her day. And when they are laying together in bed, clothed or naked, it doesn't matter. Quinn says those three words so surely, so seriously. It's seems obvious that her feelings go beyond friendship and that excites Rachel, but then again, Quinn has always been the perfect actress.

Rachel has watched her put on so many different masks, for her parents, for her classmates and peers. And now, she can't help but wonder if doting fiancée is just yet another mask she wears.

"It's just so hard to tell with her, you know? We walked into this whole thing committed to taking it seriously. We agreed we were going to be 100% convincing so no one would suspect that it wasn't real, but now it's like I have all of these feelings inside of me that I want to talk to her about, but I'm afraid that she's going to tell me this is just all for show. That she loves me, maybe even more now than she did before all of this, but it isn't necessarily _romantic_ love."

Rachel gives up on her current position and throws her body onto her mat. Brittany comes out of her position and does the same, only her fall is more like a graceful descent to the ground.

"I don't get it. How do you fake love someone? And fake kiss them? And fake buy them rings and fake plan a wedding?"

Rachel closes her eyes and laughs a little. Leave it to Brittany to take something seemingly complicated and make it as simple as that.

"That was the plan though, Britt. To just pretend. Do all that stuff together but just as friends that _looked _madly in love."

"Oh…well that sounds easy!"

"It was supposed to be, but then…I fell in love with her. And I mean, it really wasn't even a fall. It was more like jumping off the sidewalk. I never realized it, but I was already so close to falling for her, that the moment it finally happened, it was like I barely even noticed."

It was crazy to her that a week ago, she had told Riley and her cast mates that same thing. But when she had explained it to them, it was like explaining it to herself for the very first time. It was like realizing that the answer wasn't just crafted up as a cute, romantic story to tell. It was the truth. Falling in love with Quinn was effortless. It had happened over the course of 22 years but also in an instant.

She pauses her thinking to turn to Brittany and she sees her warm, sympathetic smile.

"Rach, you really should talk to her. Sam said that you're all _she _ever talks about. He said it's almost annoying. Just let her know how you feel. I'm willing to bet she feels the same."

"And if she doesn't?" Rachel sits up abruptly. "Yeah, all signs _seem _to lead to us both feeling the same way, but what if I'm wrong? I run the risk of losing everything with her, the relationship and the friendship."

Brittany just shrugs casually and rises from her position on the floor. "Risk isn't just a board game, Rach."

She narrows her eyes in utter confusion and Brittany sighs as if having to break down her line of thinking for Rachel is just the bane of her existence.

"I mean, I get why you're scared Rach, but do you really want to spend the rest of your life wondering?"

Well, she has a point there. Though speaking to Quinn about this scares her to death, she knows she could never bear not knowing the rest of her life if her feelings are reciprocated.

"Well, you got me there," she places her head in her hands and takes a few deep breaths.

She needs to make a decision and fast, this is stressing her out.

* * *

"How was your day, babe?"

Rachel continues to pick at her food as she thinks about her day.

"It was really nice. We had a table read today. I even managed to memorize a few pages. Sienn and I went over some scenes. It's so well written and actually funny. I think you're really going to like it."

Quinn nods, "Yeah, I'm super excited! I'm looking forward to meeting your cast mates…especially this lover of yours."

Rachel hears the sarcastic jealousy rolling off Quinn's tongue and she smiles to herself. She's been making a yes/no checklist for Quinn having romantic feelings for her over the last 24 hours since she spoke with Brittany and she puts that little tidbit into the yes category. Making the no side overwhelmingly outnumbered.

"Oh, yeah, we'll have to all do dinner or drinks at some point. She's super sweet, if not a little on the eccentric, flirtatious side, but we're becoming good friends."

Quinn makes some sort of noise in her throat that Rachel can't decipher the meaning of and continues to eat.

After a few moments of awkward silence, Rachel feels compelled to tell her, "She's straight though…so…"

Quinn only scoffs.

"So are we. And yet, here we are having sex and getting married." She shrugs and though Rachel feels like expanding on this conversation might lead them down a road she isn't quite ready to walk down, the universe has given her a perfect segue and it would be foolish not to take advantage of it.

"Yeah but…can we really still consider ourselves straight? I mean, I know we both enjoy the sex, so at the very least our sexuality is pretty fluid, right?" She tries to make her voice sound sure and even, so it doesn't sound as if she's fishing for information.

Quinn looks up at her and stares for a moment, completely lost.

"What? No, Rachel. I would definitely say I'm still straight. I'm not attracted to women. And if I weren't with you, I'd be with a guy."

Rachel's eyebrows raise at that. That's the last thing that she wanted to hear.

Quinn's still considers herself straight. She's still not attracted to women. And had she not agreed to this with Rachel, she'd be with a man.

But then, where did that leave her? Was Quinn not attracted to her?

_No…she has to be, _Rachel swears.

The sex wouldn't work if there was no attraction. And they both had admitted on several occasions to dancing around sex and their mutual attraction, so surely Quinn meant that she just wasn't attracted to _other _women.

"I mean, do you not consider yourself straight, Rach?"

Quinn's voice waivers and Rachel's heart sinks. She knows that tone. Quinn doesn't want to know the answer to this question. She's asked because it is the next logical question to further the conversation and that's the polite thing to do, but Rachel can tell furthering the conversation is the last thing she wants to do.

"Oh…uh, well, I don't know. This whole experience has made me a little more open to the idea of being with a woman, but I can't say if it's every woman or…," she trails off and shrugs her shoulders, not at all about to finish that sentence.

Quinn just nods and focuses on her peas, not saying a thing.

She guesses that's not the answer Quinn wanted and resumes her dinner without another word, feeling foolish

* * *

They're lying in bed and though it's fine now, when they first crawled underneath the sheets, it was the most awkward thing she had ever experienced with Rachel. They had each settled into their own sides, not saying much at all until Rachel finally fell asleep first.

She has no one to blame but herself.

Rachel had opened a door for her. Whether she was aware of it or not, she had opened a door to the conversation about Quinn's feelings, and Quinn had refused to just walk through it.

In some ways, she was being honest with Rachel. She does still consider herself straight and she is still attracted to men. But what she failed to elaborate on is the fact that she doesn't care to look at other men or especially other women.

She doesn't need a man because she's in love with Rachel and she doesn't notice the other women because regardless of her sexuality, no woman on earth compares to Rachel.

No woman is as smart or funny or sexy or talented as Rachel.

But saying all of that out loud felt like the sky diving without a parachute. It was like cliff jumping at the Grand Canyon. It was dangerous and stupid.

Despite the fleeting moments when Quinn could swear the feelings were mutual, there was no way Rachel was in love with her. As much as she wanted to, she refused to let herself even get excited about the thought because it just wasn't a possibility.

Rachel was the hesitant one. Rachel was the one who had to be persuaded to even do this. And Quinn was the one who had to convince her. Quinn was the one who has messed up and fallen in love. And now she's the one who has to live with the consequences of doing so.

Despite the fact that she is hopelessly in love with Rachel, she has to pretend that she isn't…while pretending that she is.

And no, it's no way to live life, but it's the best option compared to losing Rachel altogether. Because _that_ she wouldn't be able to handle, not back when they were just friends and certainly not now.

She sighs deeply and turns over to face her alarm clock.

1:34 a.m.

She has work in the morning. She really needs to go to sleep, but it's doing its best to evade her tonight.

_I may as well get some writing done, _Quinn thinks as she throws the sheets off of her.

But just as her feet hit the floor, she feels a shuffling in the bed and freezes.

"Baby?"

She lets out an inaudible huff of frustration.

"Yeah?" She sounds annoyed and she instantly feels bad. And really, she's not even angry with her. She's angry at how much the way she calls her 'baby' warms her soul when it probably means nothing to Rachel.

Rachel sits up a little on her elbows, rubbing the sleep from her eyes.

"You okay?"

"I'm fine Rachel. I just can't sleep."

"Oh."

Quinn stands, expecting that to be the end of the conversation, but then the room is flushed with light and her eyes take a minute to adjust.

"Agh, god," Rachel groans sleepily.

"What are you doing Rach?"

"You can't sleep," she responds, as if it should be obvious, as she too climbs out of the bed.

"Yeah, but you can and you should. You have to be up early."

Quinn says grabbing her laptop and heading to the living room. There is a small desk there where she prefers to do her writing usually, but because of the late hour, she opts for the comfort of the couch instead.

She barely manages to open the file before Rachel comes padding into the room, wearing a silk robe and knee high socks that read #SOCKS.

She looks adorable, Quinn acknowledges, as she takes a seat at the other end of the couch, not wanting to crowd Quinn. She grabs her script from the coffee table and reads lines while Quinn works.

She still has yet to tell Rachel what the book is about nor has Rachel asked. Probably because the last time she asked about the book, Quinn went off on her. Something she regrets nearly every time she opens the document.

She ignores the emerging guilt and scrolls to where she left off, starting a new chapter. She's not sure if she's almost done with the book. She has no set number of chapters. She has no goal to meet or deadline by which to finish. She just writes. About her life, her day, her experiences, whatever comes to mind. It's been more like a non-sequitur journal than a formal book. And tonight, the words comes easily. She has so much on her mind and her heart that she feels relief flood through her as she finally releases the pent up words onto paper.

* * *

She wakes with a start, not even remembering falling asleep.

A glance at the cable clock indicates that it's just after 4 a.m.

She turns towards Quinn to see that she has also passed out, with her head thrown back and mouth slightly open, laptop teetering slightly, about to fall off of the couch.

She quickly and carefully leans over to grab it and notices the batter on 4%. She doesn't know when Quinn last had a chance to save her work so she rushes towards the desk to plug it in, breathing a sigh of relief when the battery indicates that it is in fact charging.

Before walking away, she thinks to save the document one more time just in case, and though she has every intention of closing the computer after doing so, something on the screen catches her eye.

It's her name.

In the middle of a document that Quinn thought was solely about Quinn's family and upbringing, she finds her name and cannot help but read the sentence.

_"__Dad always taught me that no matter what I think and feel, to remember the end goal and how crucial it is to reach the finishing point. The end goal is to see Rachel happy. And if that means keeping my feelings to myself so that she can have everything she's dreamt of, I'm not going to sabotage that. Because how I really feel about all of this is nothing compared to the end goal."_

Her eyes are clouded by unshed tears.

This is why she didn't want to get her hopes up. This is why she didn't want to get excited about the Yes list outnumbering the No's. Because it was all in her head.

Quinn doesn't love her. Well…that's not exactly true. She loves her enough to keep up this façade, but it's not at all what Rachel had hoped for. Quinn is not _in_ love with her.

In fact, it sounds as though she wants out of this. She doesn't seem completely happy. But Quinn is selfless, as always and doesn't want to ruin this for her. So she pretends, as she always has been.

That thought breaks Rachel's heart and warms it at the same time. Two feelings only Quinn could incite in her at once.

She exhales deeply to control the onslaught of emotions headed her way.

Well there it is. The honest truth. Quinn will live with her, marry her, make her happy, have sex to satisfy their basic carnal needs. Quinn will fulfill her promise because that's what Quinn does. She keeps her word.

But that's it. This isn't some crazy fairytale romance.

_But all of those signs? All of those signals from her? _Rachel can't help but replay everything on her Yes column.

_It was just all a huge misunderstanding_, she reasons. It's all just in her head. It's all just a product of her own hopes and wishes. That's it.

She looks back at Quinn sleeping soundly on the couch and feels a single, hot tear run down her cheek.

Her first thought is to free Quinn. If she is only doing this out of obligation, Rachel feels wrong about pretending to not know. Can she really live her whole life knowing that Quinn's presence is only because she feels she has no other choice?

_I can't do that. _

But that means the alternative is living without her. And that isn't at all possible either.

They've come too far. They're in too deep. She has fallen already and couldn't go back.

They are looking at apartments together this weekend. They are planning a wedding, albeit semi-unsuccessfully at the time being. They are building a life around each other. Throwing a wrench in that will mess up everything. The relationship that Rachel loves so much and the friendship she can't live without.

So no. Neither leaving Quinn nor letting her go is a viable option.

So she has no choice. She is going to have to just suck it up. Keep her feelings to herself. Love Quinn better than anyone ever could and do her best to make her happy.

All the while pretending to not be in love…while pretending to be in love.

She sighs heavily as she heads back to the bedroom. For the first night since their big fight, she thinks she could use a night alone in bed. But even still, she throws her body on Quinn's side of the bed, head first into the pillow and breathes in deeply, missing her instantly.

This contract was supposed to be simple. This was supposed to be the easiest, most painless option.

_What the hell happened?!_

**######**

Guys. I am so sorry. I had a busy summer and getting back to school was rough. And by the time I was ready to start writing again, I had to reread the last few chapters of both stories to get a feel for it all over again. That being said, we should be back on track with semi regular updates of either story! Again, I am so sorry to have kept you waiting so long. I know one particular review of Bed of Lies said of course I had given up on my stories, but please know that I am a writer as well as a reader and I know how frustrating it is when stories I love go unfinished. It's the worst feeling to never get that closure, so I am going to finish both Contracts and Bed of Lies! Promise!

Anyway, I hope you guys aren't too upset and I hope you enjoyed the chapter. I know it may have been a little slow but it sets up what comes next! Which is what we've all been waiting for! I love you guys and appreciate your follows, favorites, reviews, and most importantly, your patience! Until next time!

Title by: A Great Big World


	18. Stuck With Me

The next few days pass by rather quickly, which is ideal for Rachel because it means that she has little time to spend either by herself wondering what to do about Quinn or actually _with _Quinn wondering what to do _about_ Quinn.

She has successfully avoided excessive time with her, but doing so has forced her to cancel their walk through of the apartment Quinn had in mind. It has also led to earlier mornings and later nights at the warehouse where they are practicing the production. Nearly every attempt Quinn has made at alone time or a conversation about them before bed or their wedding or their future has been muted almost immediately.

She just can't do it. She can't pretend _not_ to know. This isn't real. At least not for Quinn. And it is so hard pretending now that she knows. But of course, leaving isn't a viable option so that leaves her in between a rock and a hard place and the best way to handle it, in her opinion, is to avoid it.

And she has done so quite successfully.

Until tonight.

Tonight, Quinn is hell-bent on spending time with her. Which almost makes her smile.

She had shown up at the warehouse and ripped her away from work, apologizing unapologetically to her cast mates. She had drawn her a warm bath and prepared her favorite meal accompanied by her favorite wine and let Rachel talk for almost the entire time about how the play was progressing.

She had been perfect, to say the least. It was the most relaxing night Rachel had had in weeks and, though she hadn't realized it, she was in desperate need of an opportunity to relax.

She crawled into bed about 30 minutes ago, per Quinn's instructions, while she put the dishes in the dishwasher and has been reading her script patiently waiting for Quinn to join her so that they can go to sleep.

After a quick shower and brushing her teeth, Quinn makes her way to bed and sighs when her head hits the pillow.

"How was your day?" Rachel asks as she turns out her own bedside lamp and lays back in bed. She wants to reciprocate hearing about Quinn's day while also making it clear that it's bedtime.

"Fine. I was kind of hoping to talk to you though."

Rachel freezes immediately, worried about what Quinn could want to talk about right at this moment.

"Oh..yeah? About what?" She can hear the nerves in her own voice and knows that Quinn surely picked up on it as well.

"Yeah," She says leaning up a little on her elbows looking over at Rachel.

"You've been working late this past week and so by the time you're home, I've been too tired for pillow talk, so that's kinda my fault. And so I feel like the distance between us may be because I've been dropping the ball. But I'm not going into work until 1 tomorrow, so I've got all night."

Quinn's smile is wide and blinding and Rachel immediately feels guilty.

"Distance?"

Quinn's smile wanes a bit as she reaches out to touch her gently. "Yeah, I just feel like it's been forever since I got to hear about your day in full and just _be_ with you." Quinn sits up completely against the headboard and scoots closer to Rachel, kissing her bare shoulder.

"I've missed you. The day is just so long without you. So boring."

Rachel closes her eyes and exhales slowly and forces herself to remain silent.

It's moments like these that she has to be careful. Moments like these that she so desperately wants to just let it all out. She wants to tell Quinn so badly what she found, but she's so afraid of what it will lead to. But when Quinn is being sweet and loving like this, it's hard to see reason. It's hard to stay silent.

But because Quinn has known her all of her life, she understands and interprets even Rachel's silence.

So after a full minute of nothing from Rachel, she sighs in frustration.

"Okay, what is going on with you?" She pulls away abruptly startling Rachel from her thoughts.

"What?"

"This is what I'm talking about. I'm so confused here. It's like this whole past week, you've been here but you haven't been _here_. I kiss you and it's like your mind is elsewhere. I tell you I miss you and you say _nothing._ I set up a walk-through for an apartment that you seemed super excited about, until last minute when you tell me you're too busy. So what's wrong Rachel?"

"Nothing."

"Bullshit," she shoots back immediately. Rachel looks up at her, utterly surprised.

"I'm serious Quinn, I'm fine."

"If you honestly think I believe that, you're out of your mind. Rachel, I _know _you. You haven't been yourself this week and I just want to know why. Whatever it is…I want to know," she reaches out to touch Rachel's thigh and is shocked when she flinches.

"Sorry, your hands are just cold," Rachel says immediately, but the excuse isn't very convincing, even to her own ears.

And, by the hurt look on Quinn's face, it's obvious that she isn't buying it either. Quinn pulls away her hands in surrender and falls back to her side of the bed.

"Rachel, I want you to be hone—" But she's cut off by the ringing of a phone. They both look to their own phone, but it's Rachel's that is lit up with Kurt's name. It's rather late at night for a phone call, but in an effort to avoid whatever conversation Quinn is about to initiate, she slides the bar and answers the call.

"Hey K-" she is cut off immediately by his chipper, feminine voice.

"Rachel Berry, do you want to thank me now or thank me later?!"

"Uhh…"

"Now, you're going to want to thank me _now._"

Rachel chuckles lightly, "Okay…"

"Say it Rach, say 'Thank you Kurt'."

"Thank you Kurt," she mimics.

"Say 'thank you for coming through for me'."

"Thank you for coming through for me," she rolls her eyes as she repeats after him.

"Say 'thank you for being the greatest, most amazing agent ever and getting me on Good Morning America'."

She opens her mouth to repeat his words, but she can't speak. She can barely _believe _the words.

"Are you serious right now Kurt? Because I am not in the mood for jokes right now!"

"Rachel, I would NEVER joke about GMA! They literally just called me less than 5 minutes ago! I guess they were supposed to have a segment of the show tomorrow dedicated to up and coming shows on Broadway and whoever they had lined up fell through, so they called Riley to ask if he could come in and talk about the show."

"So what does Riley need me for then?!"

"Shut up and I'll tell you! Apparently, Riley told them that he was flattered to receive their call, but the show's star is who they really should be talking to! He told them all about one particular actress in the play who was chosen for the role on the spot right after she auditioned."

"That's me…" Rachel whispers in complete disbelief.

"Yeah, it is," he laughs giddily.

"Now, unfortunately, we don't have as much time to get things in order as we might get in the future. We have an early morning ahead of us tomorrow, I need you up at 4, Blaine and I will be over at 5 to dress you. He's putting the finishing touches on your outfit now and he'll do make-up in the morning at the studio. We have to be there at 6:30 and traffic in Time Square is an effing nightmare. I've ordered a car that will pick us up at 5:45 so we definitely need to be on top of things. It's going to be go go go tomorrow. You have GMA until 10 but there's also going to be a Twitter Q&amp;A both during and after the show for all the hosts. They want you to participate."

"But I-"

"I know, you don't have a Twitter. Or at least you didn't. But now you do, I'll text you the log in info. The very first tweet needs to be about how excited you are for the show tomorrow. Do you want me to do it or?"

"Oh, uh, I'm not sure how it works, but I'm sure Quinn can help me figure it out."

"Figure out what?" Quinn asks as she comes back into the room, with a bottle of water and a frown on her face.

Rachel's energy is renewed and she immediately ends the call with Kurt.

"Okay, text me the login info and I'll see you in the morning! Bye!"

Rachel hangs up without waiting for a response and tosses her phone on the bed, scrambling across the bed to Quinn's side.

"Quiiiiiiiin!" She squeals and Quinn can't help but smile. Even though she's still sure that something is going on with her, Rachel is undoubtedly the cutest thing she's ever seen when she gets excited and worked up.

"Whaaaaat?" She whines back.

"Guess whose fiancée is going to be on national freaking television tomorrow?!"

Quinn's eyes widen comically and a smile spreads across her face.

This is what Rachel lives for. That smile.

"What?! Rachel Barbara Berry, you cannot be serious right now. H-How did you…what…what channel?!"

Quinn's excitement is utterly infectious and Rachel begins bouncing on the bed.

"GMA Quinn! I am going to be on Good Morning America! Can you believe it?!"

Quinn runs her hands through her hair, at an absolute loss for words. She cannot believe it.

She has no words. None to describe her happiness or her pride. So she opens her arms and Rachel falls into them immediately, resting her head on Quinn's shoulder.

They stand there for a few minutes. Rachel has soaked Quinn's shoulders with her tears of joy, but as always, Quinn says nothing. She just holds her, whispering words of encouragement into her hair as she kisses her again and again.

And when Rachel finally pulls away to call her fathers, Quinn resumes her spot right next to her in bed, cuddled up close.

Quinn listens in as her fathers whoop and holler on the line, congratulating her on coming so far so fast and she can't help but feel so overcome with her sense of joy. She really didn't have a huge hand in this. Like they said, Rachel's success was always inevitable but this is just all happening so fast. She expected years of struggling. She expected trials and tribulations, like almost everyone else that had finally made it to Broadway. But, as she looks over at Rachel, she shakes her head a bit.

_She's always been the exception to every rule anyway. _

She lays in their bed, as Rachel practices her responses for tomorrow's questions with her dad's and just thinks about how much this will change things.

When Rachel finally hangs up with them, she reiterates those thoughts to her.

_Everyone watches Good Morning America. _

_Everyone will know you. _

_Everything will change. _

There is so much fear and hesitation in Quinn's voice, especially considering their unresolved argument from earlier in the night. She still has yet to figure out what's going with her. Yet Rachel shakes her head adamantly and swears this will change nothing. And that gives Quinn some hope.

But, of course, she wasn't stupid or foolish enough to think that Rachel would just be able to go on one of the most popular morning talk shows in New York and then continue to walk around the city as she had before.

And she is right.

Because the crowd loves her. They eat up every practiced word. But there's nothing stiff or rehearsed about Rachel. She is perfect. She is a natural. She is sweet and kind and before her 30 minutes is even up, they nickname her "Broadway's Sweetheart".

She is charming and funny and Quinn can't help but beam as she watches from a room in the back for private viewings.

_"__So Rachel, it's time we moved on to a bit of Q&amp;A. Now, I know earlier this morning you said you're new on Twitter right?" _

_She laughs, looking off the stage and tucking back a strand of her hair as if she's embarrassed. _

_Blaine has done such a good job with her, especially considering his short notice. According to Kurt, he had just finished hemming her dress just moments before they had to leave. But she's so glad that he did, because Rachel looks beyond lovely in her baby blue satin dress. It is layered with a tighter, form-fitting blue dress underneath and a flowing see through material on top that opens in the front to expose her tan legs and cream heels. Her hair is in a bun excluding a few strategically left pieces and with just a touch of makeup, she is the prettiest thing Quinn has ever seen. _

_And though initially she was a little tense and the bright lights were forcing her to squint a bit, she looks like she's in her element now. _

_"__I'm afraid it's true. I am just awful with social media. But just for you, I made a twitter late last night." _

_They all laugh and it seems to be pretty genuine. _

_"__Well, we appreciate it and we know a lot of new fans do as well. According to our producers…you've received over 1,000 tweets so far!" _

_The entire cast looks impressed but she's just confused. _

_"__Oh dear Barbra! Does that mean I have 1,000 messages to check!?" They laugh again and she hates that Quinn didn't prepare her more for this. She helped her set up a Twitter and Instagram the night before, but she mentioned nothing about receiving 'tweets'. She has no clue what that even means! _

_"__Well, don't worry, we've sifted through them and picked a few that we thought were interesting. Alright," George turns to a t.v. closest to him, "so we've pulled up a few here up on the screen," and true to his word, a tweet pops up on the televisions in the studio. _

_"__This one is from yaboyJon," Robin chimes in, "he wants to know 'What is your favorite thing to do when you're not rehearsing?'" _

_The other hosts turn to her as she considers the question._

_"__Hmm, well Jon…I hope it's okay if I call you Jon," Rachel says and Quinn can't contain her snicker knowing that somewhere out there some pimply theater geek is probably losing his mind at the fact that she's responding to his lame tweet. "I would say my favorite thing to do is to go for walks. I love Central Park. Especially in the winter. And I love the city in general, so just walking around and people watching is wonderful." _

_The others on stage comment on the beauty of the city and the Christmas tree in Rockefeller and agree with her and she smiles in relief that she's handling this well._

_"__The next one is from CandyCane411," Robin reads off, "'Rachel, was it hard to get this role? Did you ever feel like quitting while auditioning?"_

_She takes a breath and prepares her thoughts, having not quite practiced this question before. "Well, candy cane, I will say that though this role felt really natural, I auditioned for a lot of parts before stumbling on Riley, my producer. And absolutely, some days, I found myself thinking 'Gosh, this is really hard', you know? But I think when you're passionate about something, when you love something the way I love Broadway, you don't ever thinking about __**quitting**__ on it. Broadway is my dream. And a dream is like a relationship. It's hard sometimes, it takes a lot of work. But when you put in the effort, it can produce wonderful results. So I know it's annoying to maybe hear a lot of no's, but it'll all be worth it when you finally get your yes. Whatever your dream is."_

_Rachel looks over to the other cast members to find them nodding in agreement. _

_"__Oh, absolutely, I can't even tell you how many people said to me 'You just don't have the look for daytime t.v.'," Lara adds in just as a new tweet pops up._

_"__Aaand speaking of relationships, Bobbytheballer33 asked 'You're so hot. Marry me Rachel Berry?'"_

_The whole cast laughs as Rachel flushes deep red. She is beyond flattered at the question, having waited her entire life for the day when adoring fans asked for autographs and spontaneously proposed. _

_She had waited her whole life to feel wanted like this, and yet it wasn't knowing that some stranger wanted to marry her that finally made her feel like she had made it. It was the blonde haired, hazel eyed beauty in the back room watching her right now who had already proposed. And that thought propels her to do something she swore she wouldn't do._

_Mention Quinn._

_"__Well, that's really sweet Bobby, and if I weren't already engaged, I would have loved to have been Mrs. Bobbytheballer." _

_The entire cast is torn between laughing at her response and absolute surprise at her confession. _

_And they aren't the only ones. _

_As she watches, Quinn's jaw is on the floor._

_This was the last thing she expected to come out of this simple interview. Especially after their miniature argument earlier about Rachel taking off her ring, she didn't think there would be any mention of her. _

_She remembers fighting Rachel at the studio just 10 minutes before she was set to go on national television. _

_Rachel had slipped the ring off and handed it to Quinn, asking for her to keep it safe while she was working. _

_Quinn stood confused for a moment and then utterly appalled. _

_"__Why would I hold onto it? Why wouldn't you wear it?"_

_Rachel bites her lip nervously before responding, and it's that gesture that tells her that whatever comes next is probably a lie. _

_"__I'm just not ready to have that discussion with the world."_

_"__What discussion exactly Rachel? The discussion about how you found someone to love and spend your life with? Someone who loves you? I'm confused…first you didn't want to be alone in this and now you want them to think you're single?!" _

_But Rachel just flashes her look of anger and shakes her head. She can't understand why Quinn is forcing this so much when she barely wants to be in this relationship anyway._

_"__I don't have time for this," she says effectively ending the conversation, "I have to be on in less than ten and I need to do my warm ups." _

_She says nothing else and walks away, leaving Quinn with confusion in her head, sadness in her heart, and Rachel's engagement ring in her hand. _

_But as she's watching now, she feels nothing but joy and love for Rachel Berry. She has no idea what made her change her mind but she also doesn't care. She's just glad that she has. She focuses her attention back on the screen to see the laughter dying down. _

_"__Woah woah, now I hope you didn't think we were just going to breeze over that. Now, what's this I hear about an engagement?" Robin asks excitedly. _

_"__Yes yes, and is there a ring? I love engagement rings!" Lara adds._

_"__They're gorgeous!" _

_Rachel smiles broadly and shakes her head. "I was hoping we could just keep on moving but I can tell that's not going to happen! Yes…I am engaged." The women on stage light up at that though Rachel can't tell if it's genuine or not considering she's a complete stranger, but the excitement is infectious. _

_"__No ring on right now. I took it off because I was afraid the light might bounce off of it and blind someone." They laugh with her and she decides to continue. _

_"__Quinn is an overachiever so the ring is a little intimidating. I absolutely love it, but I feel like it takes up my whole hand." _

_"__Wow, well that must mean he really loves you." _

_"__That's what Riley, our producer, said," she laughs and responds before even taking the time to consider the pronoun confusion. But Quinn has heard it. And she waits anxiously for her to clear it up. _

_But she doesn't and Quinn begins to pace as they move on to the next tweet. _

_"__From Call_Me_MrTitanic, this one came not thirty seconds ago, 'Is Quinn with you right now? Can we meet him?"_

_But this time she doesn't miss it. Rachel smirks a little and looks directly at the camera. _

_Though she hadn't at all expected it to come up in her very first interview, she had thought about this moment often. The point when she comes out and announces that she's marrying a woman._

_"__Well, Mr. Titanic, Quinn is with me right now, backstage. But unfortunately, __**she's**__ a very private person. So meeting her is probably not going to happen today." _

_When she finally looks over at her, the entire cast looks surprised at her revelation, but not at all displeased. _

_She releases the breath that she's been holding when Lara speaks up, "Is Quinn the woman you came in with today?" _

_"__Yeah, she's wonderful! She had the morning off and wanted to come with me. This is my first interview ever, so we were both super excited!" _

_Lara and Robin both coo and George smiles, chiming in to ask his own question, "I know this is supposed to be a Q&amp;A with your fans, but I have to say I'm a fan myself already and I'm curious, what does Quinn do? Broadway? Musician?"_

_Rachel laughs as she thinks about the stark difference between their professions before saying aloud, "Oh no no. You're going to love this. She's actually an investment banker." They looked just as surprised as everyone else she tells. "I'm not sure why, but she loves it. And she's great at it! I really feel terrible too because she actually has to be at work right after this but she was up all night with me teaching me about Twitter and Instantgram and-" _

_"__Instagram," Lara corrects her and she covers her face in actual embarrassment this time._

_"__Oh gosh, see this is why I need her. But yeah, she was just up all night so now I bet she's passed out backstage."_

_At this point, the interview has taken a turn she was in no way expecting, but talking about Quinn has fixed a permanent smile on her face. This is the one topic she no longer feels the need to rehearse or think about before she speaks. _

_"__Wow, that's so sweet. I know I'm in bed every night by like 9, is she the type to go to bed early?" _

_"__Um, we both are really. We are usually in bed by 10 when I don't have late rehearsals, which I have had like all week. So I've…I've actually been feeling really bad because I've gotten home and headed straight to bed and it's just been a strain on both of us, not being able to talk and connect like we normally do." _

_Quinn finds herself subconsciously nodding. _

_Now she feels a bit bad. She got on Rachel's case the night before, but she never stopped to consider that Rachel had been just as miserable as her. Maybe Rachel cancelling plans and being distant had nothing to do with her. Maybe she really was just dealing with a lot at work. She makes a mental note to apologize later, as the voices from the t.v. pull her from her thoughts, _

_"__Yeah, that's always the hardest part, managing your time between work and a relationship. My husband and I are on completely different schedules, so it does take some time to figure out how to make it work." _

_Rachel nods somewhat distracted. The issue isn't really work. Work isn't what wakes her up early or keeps her out late. It's the fear that Quinn isn't as into this as she is. It's the worry that has been plaguing her for a week that for Quinn this is just all for show. And at this point, because Rachel has accepted that she is falling in love with her, she doesn't want a halfhearted relationship. She wants everything. Everything that Quinn has to offer. But she certainly doesn't want it if Quinn is only giving it to her because she feels obligated. _

_She shakes her head lightly and tries to focus on the interview at hand, only imagining how dumb she would look zoning out._

_"__Well, unfortunately, that's all the time we have Rachel. But the Q&amp;A will continue until 10 a.m. with Rachel Berry and she'll be answering your questions, so please keep tweeting! And Rachel," Lara says turning to her, "It was such a pleasure meeting you and having you here. We are so happy to be your first interview." _

_"__Oh, the pleasure was all mine. This was seriously like a dream come true." _

_"__Alright, well, we're going to take a quick break and when we come back, we'll take a look at our weather and we'll also show you how to start preparing early for the holiday season that's quickly approaching. Don't go anywhere." _

Immediately, the crew and cast start buzzing around her. She is hugged and congratulated and she's so grateful for the attention but she is desperate to get back to Quinn. As she steps off the stage and tries to maneuver her way back to her dressing room, she can't wipe the smile off of her face.

She just finished her first, of hopefully many, television interviews and all she wants is to see Quinn. Kurt is talking a mile a minute, instructing her on what's next, but she hears nothing. Says nothing. Sees nothing. After something so monumental, she just wants Quinn.

She finally makes it back to the room and before the door is even closed, Quinn's lips are pressed against hers. Quinn's hands are in her hair and she's forced her back to the door, firmly shutting in on Kurt who may or may not still be talking.

But Rachel couldn't care less. This is what she needed. This is what she was looking for all along.

When they finally pull apart, only because breathing becomes a necessity, Quinn looks her in the eyes and smiles softly, pressing one more kiss to her lips.

"Promise not to take it off ever again."

Rachel's brows furrow in confusion for a moment before realizing that her engagement ring is back on her finger, safe and sound, right where it belongs.

_Sneaky bitch, _Rachel thinks as she presses her head to Quinn's.

"I promise."

They stand there in silence for a few minutes, just enjoying this moment of absolute silence and solace.

"You were perfect, baby. They loved you."

Rachel lets out a gentle laugh and can't stop herself from crying silently.

"I love you so much, Quinn."

She wipes the few tears trailing her cheeks and kisses each one gently.

"I love you more, I can promise you that."

She sighs contentedly. She cannot believe that this is her life. This isn't even a dream come true for her because she's never dreamt of something like this. Her goal has always been Broadway, not daytime talk shows or anything of the sort. But now that she's had a taste of this, she never wants to let it go.

And that thought reminds her of what Quinn had said, the day that she had come to collect her things. Quinn had said that she couldn't go back to just being friends now that she knew how wonderful it felt to have Rachel like this. And she agrees. She can't go back either. She doesn't want to. But she has to know…

"You want this too, yeah? Like, I'm not the only one who's happy, right?"

The question is vague and Quinn doesn't really understand what she's asking. But for Rachel, the answer is always,

"Yes, of course."

Rachel lets her head slip to Quinn's shoulder and wraps her arms around her tightly. Quinn just holds her, confused but content. She wants to ask about last night. She wants an explanation for not wanting to wear her ring on camera, but she also doesn't want to ruin this bubble they're in right now. She doesn't want to argue or instigate, so she makes a mental note to save it all for later.

"Good. Because…because I feel like I was wrong. Things are going to change. But... I don't want us to be one of those things. I don't want to ever get too busy. Too famous or whatever. I just want us to stay the same, always. Okay?"

She has no clue what this is about. She has no idea how things got so intense, but she knows that she wants the same. She always has had the same values and dreams as Rachel so it's not hard to agree.

"Of course baby, I promise, we're going to be okay. Nothing the world throws at us is going to change us."

She just nods and whispers her affections into Quinn's neck as they stand there for a few more minutes before Kurt tells them the car is ready.

* * *

Rachel multitasks on the ride home, facetiming her fathers and responding to her tweets, reading funny ones out loud and ignoring a few rude ones, all while wrapped up in Quinn's loving arms for the duration of the ride.

But when the Tahoe pulls up at their apartment, as they are surrounded by a sea of paparazzi and flashing lights, they both know that their moment in the dressing room is long gone. For better or worse, things will never be the same.

**######**

**Hello everyone! I am so so sorry for the three month hiatus, but I seriously have been swamped with school. It's my final year so they're making it more difficult every day, so there was just no time to write. I would seriously do a sentence or two a day and then pass out in bed. This is actually my first official day of winter break and as you can see, it's been a productive one. Expect a few more updates before I head back to school in the new year, for sure! I appreciate you all being patient with me and I hope this story is still something you're interested in because I certainly love writing it. Please review and let me know what you think as I'm getting back into the swing of things! And I know that their feelings are back and forth but soon we'll be clearing everything up and getting it all out in the open, so just bear with me!**

**Until next time.**

**Title by Timeflies **


	19. Tell Her You Love Her

"Baby."

She ignores her.

"Baaaby," she whines a little louder and a little closer to Quinn's ear.

"Quiiiiiiin, love meeeee."

Quinn finally turns over to ask what the hell is wrong with her when she sees Rachel's phone held up and pointed directly at her.

"What the hell are you doing Rach?"

"Sam introduced me to Snapchat…," she says lowering the phone and playing with filters, "how cool is this?"

Quinn just laughs and rolls back over. This has been the past week for them. Rachel constantly on her phone, tweeting or "instantgraming" as she continues to call it, and now snapchatting apparently.

"I just added that to my story. Everyone loves you!"

Quinn rolls her eyes at that. That is the biggest lie she's ever heard.

According to Rachel, part of Kurt's job also includes letting her know any time that she's been mentioned, so he's been texting and calling nonstop. He'd called last week to tell her that were to be featured on TMZ and sure enough, they were.

It was footage of Rachel getting out of the truck after GMA. The photographers were shouting her name and she was waving. She stopped to answer a few questions and the cast even joked that she was probably the nicest celebrity they had ever encountered. And Rachel had nearly blown out Quinn's ear drum at the mention of the "c" word.

But the fun had stopped when they began asking Quinn a million questions.

_Quinn, what's your last name?_

_Quinn, how did you meet Rachel Berry?_

_Quinn, how old are you?_

_Quinn, when's the wedding?_

She wasn't in any mood to deal with anything like that and since the interview last week, there has been at least one photographer outside of their apartment at any given time, asking her the same questions over and over again. She hasn't been able to avoid photos, but she never speaks to them. Never answers their questions. Just politely asks them to move and continues on her way.

Obviously, her father had occasionally been photographed or interviewed by the press, but those were much less intrusive encounters and certainly not every damn day. She couldn't be happier for Rachel to be in the spotlight like this, but she in no way was interested in answering questions or drawing any additional attention to herself.

Which then made her seem like a bitch. And that's all that's been circulating about her as of the last four days.

After finding out she was Quinn Fabray of the Fabray family, shows like TMZ were quick to spill the information, claiming she came from a very rich, exclusive family (true) and that she was very serious and didn't like to be bothered (only partially true). But of course, because Rachel was so likeable and friendly, as of a two days ago, someone wrote an online blog about how poorly matched the couple was together. And since then, Rachel has been hell-bent on showing a sweeter, more loving side of Quinn.

Surprisingly, the idea hadn't come from Kurt like she originally suspected, which made her more willing to cooperate, but she didn't realize that cooperation meant being filmed at all hours of the day.

She finally thinks about the last thing that Rachel said to her and responds accordingly.

"They don't love me, Rach. They literally all think I'm mean and unapproachable."

Rachel laughs at that and cuddles up into Quinn's back.

"That's because right now you're not acting very nice or approachable."

Quinn smirks at that. It's true, she hasn't done anything outwardly mean but she's also not trying very hard to make them like her either. She kind of couldn't care less though.

"Well, it's not me they need to love. It's you babe. And they do. So I don't see the problem."

"The problem _Quincy_,"

"Ew! That's not my name!" she yells attempting to turn around to face her, but Rachel stands her horizontal ground and refuses to move.

"The problem is that I don't want my fans to hate you. Remember, the original plan was to be the ultimate team! You take care of the business stuff and I take care of the stage stuff! And together, we'd be unstoppable! Though I don't at all see how you're keeping up your end of the bargain."

Quinn sighs, "Keeping up my end of the bargain would've been a lot easier if I had my money. Well…not mine I guess…but, yeah. I would've had the money to invest in your show, for advertising and stuff you know? But I just…I didn't expect my dad to…," she trails off, but Rachel understands the unspoken.

He hasn't called. It's been almost a year and he still hasn't called. She knows he's alive and well because Annie still calls a few times a month like clockwork. But never her father and so by default, never her mother either.

"I'm sorry baby," she whispers soothingly, moving some of her hair from her neck to give her a light kiss.

But Quinn just shakes her head.

"Don't worry about it. Seriously. His loss."

Rachel nods and for the millionth time wonders what transpired between them in his office that night.

Quinn has not been at all forthcoming with the details but she is desperate to know. Because Quinn loves her dad. And Mr. Fabray absolutely adores Quinn. So she can't imagine what would have brought about this distance, but she knows that it's eating away at Quinn. That much is obvious.

"Is there anything I can do, love?"

Quinn attempts to turn in her arms again and this time Rachel obliges. When they are finally lying facing each other, she wraps her arms around her waist and pulls her so close that their noses are touching.

"Just keep loving me like you do and we'll be fine."

Rachel can't stop herself. She leans forward and presses her lips to Quinn's. They kiss tentatively for a moment, as if they haven't done this in a while, before Rachel pulls away.

"I love you so much Quinn. Do you know that?"

She laughs at that. "How could I not Rach? You hog the sheets like you love me. And steal food from my plate like you love me. So trust me, I know."

Rachel just smirks and kisses her again. "Good. Because those are my favorite ways to show you I'm serious about this."

Quinn scoffs hard in her face and they both share a laugh.

"Want to just lay in bed all day? Watch movies? Play scrabble?" Quinn finally asks after a few minutes of comfortable silence.

Rachel rolls her eyes, though the offer does sound appealing. "If only I could. But curtain goes up the day after Christmas which means we have just over two months to get everything together. This has been the most stressful thing ever."

Quinn nods slowly. "Clearly…you haven't talked about the wedding in like a month…"

She looks up at Quinn and smiles sadly. "I know, I've just been pulled in so many different directions."

Quinn doesn't necessarily understand that statement. "Really only one direction…"

She looks up at Quinn and can't quite read her face. Quinn, who is usually quite understanding and applies no pressure, looks somewhat irritated and she begins to feel bad.

It's true, she hasn't discussed the wedding in what felt like forever. Since finding the document, she's been avoiding wedding talk. She and Quinn have been relatively normal, even trying to set up another time to see the potential apartment, but she's shied away from talking about anything as permanent as a wedding.

It has nothing to do with whether or not she wants to marry Quinn, because of course she does.

It's just the issue of whether Quinn is 100% sure about marrying her. Now that she knows Quinn is having doubts, she's in no rush.

"Well…yeah, I know this show has been taking up a lot of my time, but it's going to pay off in the end. In fact, it's already paying off. I have 3,000 instantgram followers."

Quinn has to fight rolling her own eyes at that.

It's amazing to her how much Rachel all of a sudden cares about followers when two weeks ago she didn't even have a profile for any social media platforms.

"Yeah, I guess. I just…I don't want to seem like that flaky couple that is engaged for so long that it starts to look like it's never going to happen."

Rachel nods, agreeing. "That's true. Okay, how about after the show premieres, we resume looking for a location?"

Quinn thinks about that, not very impressed by the general timeline she's been given. But she also doesn't want to stress the diva out, so she is left with no other option but too agree.

"Ugh, fine. But, in the meantime, I probably need to go get fitted for this tux you want me to wear. That way, if I look dumb, I can still pick out a dress."

"You're not going to look dumb at all. I think you're going to look so sexy," Rachel says moving in for a kiss, but Quinn pulls back abruptly.

"Hey, but seriously…you'll start looking for a dress too?"

Rachel rolls her eyes and sighs, "Yes, yes. Britt and I will start looking for a dress too."

Quinn looks at her skeptically for a moment, "Promise?"

"Promise," she says, sealing her words with a kiss.

"Good. I seriously cannot wait to see what kind of dress you pick. I just hate the thought that someone else gets to see it on you before I do. It's making me unreasonably jealous," Quinn laughs at her own joke before rolling over to get out of bed and start her Saturday, but Rachel lays there for a minute more thinking about that statement.

Quinn has never really been the overly possessive type. That's more her, for sure. But when it came to her, Quinn did seem a little more…protective.

She hated when the men at her job looked her way when she dropped in and more recently, she had been less than impressed with the young male photographers that had been striking up conversations with her. But Quinn has never had too much of an issue with them because Rachel never sees those people. They're not around enough for Quinn to be worried.

But Rachel smiles deviously when she remembers that there is one person that Quinn would despise more than anyone.

Someone she sees six days out of the week.

Someone she spends more time with than her own fiancée.

The only other woman Rachel has ever kissed.

* * *

"She doesn't hate you, I swear!"

They make eye contact and both accept that that is an absolute lie.

"Okay, okay," Rachel amends, "she may not _love_ you! BUT she has said that she wants to get to know you!"

"Why?" She asks skeptically.

"Because…we work so closely together."

She laughs whole heartedly from her spot on the floor, but says nothing.

Rachel takes a moment to recognize the humor in her previous statement. It's true, they work very closely together in every sense of the word, at one point even having to act out a rather sensual bedroom scene. She blushes at the thought.

"Please please please Sienn, I really would love it if you could come to dinner."

"I really don't want to. And I don't know why she would want me to. She is aware that I spend half of my day flirting with you and the other half making out with you, right?"

No, Quinn is not aware. Because up until now, Rachel never wanted to give her a reason to worry. But now, that's exactly what she wants.

She _wants_ Quinn to worry. She wants Quinn to be afraid of losing her. And maybe even more than that, she wants to give Quinn an out. Quinn is nothing if not observant and attentive. If Sienn flirts, like she always does, and Quinn notices, she can do one of two things: use it as an excuse to end things, the reason being that Rachel has found someone else or she can fight for her.

And Rachel hopes to God that she does the latter because she has no Plan B should Quinn look at this as an opportunity to urge Rachel to go after Sienn so that she can be free.

The very thought causes her eyes to prickle and she curses herself again for being an easy cryer.

"So? Will you please come over for dinner tomorrow night?"

"If you really want me to, babe, I will. But I'm serious, I'm not about to pretend to be all cutesy with her. She's the opposition here," Sienn finally stands from stretching and puts her wild hair into a low pony tail.

Rachel comes a little closer and tucks a strand of missed hair behind her ear.

"I don't see how she's the opposition…" Rachel is so close that she's nearly breathing right onto her lips. "You're straight, remember?"

Sienn bites her lip at that, smirking, but Rachel walks away before she can respond with an undoubtedly witty comeback.

She smiles to herself though. It's no secret that Sienn is attracted to her, despite her proclamations of being strictly into men. Right now, that works out to her advantage.

Sienn has agreed to dinner which means all she needs to do now is convince Quinn to cook, eat at the actual table _with _her, speak to her civilly, and not kill her by the end of the night.

_Easier said than done._

* * *

The tension at the table is palpable. Rachel could cut it would a knife, but she knows that bringing a knife to the table at this point would only encourage Quinn to do something regrettable.

Quinn is sitting in her usual spot at the table, doing something in between sulking and snarling and she wants to laugh at how cute she is, but she has a role to play.

Quinn and Sienn have met only a handful of times and they had instantly taken a disliking to each other.

The very first time Quinn had come to the "set", Sienn had extended her hand which she had shaken for .00002 seconds before releasing it and looking over at Rachel, asking if she was done for the day.

She was disgusted by the fact that Rachel had to kiss her on a daily basis and did little to hide it, but per Rachel's request, Quinn hadn't mentioned it at all during dinner and things were going…well enough.

_She's clearly feeling something, though I can't tell if it's jealousy…_she thinks to herself as she looks over at Quinn who's scowling at her green beans.

"This meal is delicious baby. Thank you for cooking."

Quinn looks up from her plate and smiles softly at her, forgetting momentarily that her sworn enemy is seated in between them at the square table.

"Of course, I'm glad you like it." They share a moment and as if she knows her job is to annoy the shit out of Quinn, Sienn speaks up.

"I myself am used to French cuisine but this is…nice too." She moves around her homemade potatoes but doesn't make a move to eat them.

Quinn barely conceals an eye roll before looking back down at her food.

"Well, there's a place down the street that makes wonderful crepes. Perhaps you should give that a try. Right now." Quinn mumbles the last part but Sienn certainly hears it because she smirks, loving the effect she's having on her.

As if her poor attitude about dinner isn't enough, she looks over to Rachel and grabs her hand excitedly.

"Oh monde, sweetie! We absolutely _must _try it. You've had crepes, oui?"

Sometimes when Sienn gets excited, she slips in a few French words into her sentences and if Rachel's being completely honest, it's kind of hot. Not "pack up my things and leave Quinn" hot, but definitely attractive, especially when coupled with an already sexy accent.

"Well, no-"

"Rach and I were actually going try it together so…" Quinn trails off, letting her know that, even though she just made up these plans, they _have _plans that she isn't allowed to intrude upon.

Rachel looks over at her, questioningly, but she plays along, not wanting to argue and make Quinn any more upset.

"Well, surely darling you have had many firsts with Rachel. Perhaps I could steal one or two of them?"

Rachel looks over in shock to find Sienn smiling innocently, but obviously she knows the double meaning in her words. And apparently Quinn hears it too because she takes one last look at their still clasped hands on top of the table, clenches her jaw, and abruptly gets up from the table.

She reaches over for Rachel's plate and almost snatches it away.

"Here, you guys stay cuddled up. I'll get this."

Rachel wants to protest about how she's not done eating yet, but Quinn is already gone.

She watches her walk through the kitchen threshold before turning abruptly to face Sienn, who looks positively pleased with herself.

Seeing her outraged expression, she shrugs. "Whaaat? I told you I was not going to play nice."

"But that doesn't mean you say things like _that._"

"Well, she should know that there's something between us. A spark if you will."

"There is _nothing _between us, Sienn! And I don't want her thinking there is."

The irony is not lost on her that that is _exactly _what she wants Quinn to think.

"Then why are you still holding my hand, love?"

She looks down and finds that they are still holding hands and she immediately pulls her hand away.

Sienn continues to smirk at her and she eventually can't stand it anymore. She gets up to go check on Quinn, rolling her eyes at the damage she's created.

She finds her in the kitchen scrubbing dishes furiously. She stands next to her for a moment waiting for her to say something, not really sure of what _she_ should say.

After a few minutes of silence, Quinn begins to relax with the dishes and looks over at her briefly, clearly ashamed.

"I'm sorry. I didn't mean to be a bitch or anything. I'll apologize."

It looks like it absolutely pains Quinn to say it, but she knows this is what Quinn is accustomed to. Saying thank you when she isn't grateful and apologizing when she isn't sorry.

_Because that's the Fabray way, _Rachel hears Mr. Fabray saying in her head and she wonders if Quinn hears it too. His firm, but almost apologetic voice as he says it, as if he knows what a great imposition and burden he's placing on her shoulders.

"You don't have to do that. Seriously. She's just like that sometimes. We'll just let it be."

Quinn nods and smiles at her appreciatively.

"Can we pretend like there's no dessert please?"

Rachel laughs at that and shakes her head, sympathetically.

"Come on Rach, I can't go another 12 rounds with her."

Rachel's eyebrows lift at that. "What's the problem? You don't think you'd come out of it alive?"

Quinn's hands stop moving at once and she looks over at her Rachel with a small smirk.

"Not at all. I have no doubt I would come out on top. I just worry that you wouldn't be able to find another co-star so late in the game."

Rachel laughs aloud again and comes closer, kissing Quinn soundly on the cheek.

"Well, now I know what to get you for the holidays."

Quinn raises her eyebrow in question.

"For taking down such a gruesome opponent, you deserve a wrestling belt, with your name on it! Oh, and gold stars too!"

Quinn chuckles and reaches over to dry her hands on the towel next to the sink.

"You know what," she says turning to Rachel and wraps her arms around her waist, pulling her in for a much needed hug.

She lays her head on Quinn's shoulder, breathing in her scent. "What?" She asks just above a whisper.

"The belt isn't necessary. You're the only heavyweight prize I need."

Rachel smiles broadly at that before a thought hits her.

"Are you calling me fat?!" she pushes Quinn away but she still says nothing, she just smiles and laughs.

She goes to the refrigerator and grabs the small tray of individual strawberry shortcakes and pushes them into Rachel's hands.

"She gets one. Then we politely throw her purse at her and push her forcefully, but gently, out the door. Is that clear?"

Rachel rolls her eyes, but nods.

Quinn stares at her for a moment, then leans forward to kiss Rachel, careful not to bump the tray.

"Mm, what was that for?" She asks as they pull apart.

"That kiss was payment. For what I've had to endure thus far."

Rachel throws her head back in laughter and Quinn just watches her, smiling adoringly.

"Well, thank you for putting up with this baby."

"Mmhmm, you're just lucky I love you. Now come on, remember, one and done," she says just before pushing the door to the kitchen open and rejoining their guest at the table.

But Rachel stands frozen for a moment.

Is this it? Is this how Quinn handles her jealousy? She fumes in the kitchen for a few seconds, kisses Rachel and then she's just magically fine?

_That can't be it. _

But…why not? Why can't this be it? Surely, genuine couples don't have an all-out relational war every time someone gets jealous, so why should she expect that from Quinn?

She sighs, realizing that perhaps this wasn't the most logical approach after all.

But what would be then? How would she know if what Quinn was feeling was real?

Brittney's voice immediately pops into her head, telling her to just _ask_.

_But what if I don't like the answer? _

But she reasons with herself that anything has to be better than this constant state of limbo she's currently in.

So with her head held high, and dessert in her hand, she resolves to just ask Quinn.

To just _ask_ her.

* * *

She wants to, she does. But then work gets busy and the next thing she knows, it's the week of Thanksgiving and still she has yet to do it.

Though she wants to, things have been pretty mellow between them. There have been no mentions of certain co-stars and things between them have been damn near perfect.

The cameras haven't died down and Quinn still refuses to speak to them, but Rachel eats up the attention.

She loves it. Up until today, that is.

Today they have betrayed her. Today, despite her kindness towards them, they have done something completely unkind and unexpected.

Right there, on the front cover of an issue of "Celebrity Insider" is a picture of her.

_Not at all how I envisioned my first magazine cover. _

She has no idea where they got such a picture and she knows for a fact that it can't be real.

But the moment Quinn comes through the door, she can tell that she's very aware of this picture.

And the look in her eyes, the one of hurt and disbelief, says she believes every falsified pixel.

"Qui-"

"I don't want to talk about this. I just don't."

"Baby, it's not-"

"Oh my God, Rachel please don't tell me it's not what it fucking looks like!"

Rachel takes an unconscious step back, hating being yelled at like this.

In a way that Quinn promised she would never do again.

As if remembering that promise suddenly, Quinn shakes her head, running her fingers rapidly through her hair. When she speaks again, a few moments later, her voice is quiet and reasonably calm.

"I need to start dinner. Your dads are getting in in less than 2 hours."

Right. Her fathers are due at the airport soon.

This is definitely the worst timing ever.

She wants to follow Quinn into the bedroom and talk things through, but she honestly doesn't know if it's a good idea.

_Maybe when she calms down. Cooking always soothes her after a hard day._

And she hopes and prays that it does because they need to settle this before her parents get here.

She hates that they have to have this conversation on someone else's terms because it's the last thing she wanted to do.

And in the midst of those hopes and prayers, she curses herself for her cowardice, knowing that she should've just _asked_ when she had the chance.

######

**Well there it is. The set up for the inevitable final storm. The moment we've all been waiting for. I am so excited to be finally getting to this point. I hope you all enjoyed this chapter and if you did, please leave a review and let me know. And if you hated it, let me know that too! Writing has certainly given me a tougher skin for criticism! **

**Also, because a few people messaged me and said they were surprised I shipped SwanQueen, I thought I'd post here that I have been co-writing a new SQ fic so if you're interested, check it out! **

**As always, thank you for the reviews, follows, and favorites! ****Until next time! **

**Title by: Echosmith **


	20. You Are In Love

It's been almost a half hour and she hasn't heard anything from the kitchen other than the banging and clanging of pots and pans as Quinn prepares the small feast for her fathers.

Quinn is right. Her dads will be here in an hour and a half and they are severely running out of time. Not only that but she doesn't like the thought of Quinn still thinking that this magazine cover is in any way true. She wants to give her space but she doesn't want to wait too long to approach her lest she think Rachel has been using the time to come up with a decent alibi.

She takes a deep breath, counts to ten and then pushes through the doors to the kitchen, entering quietly, not wanting to disturb her.

Rachel watches as she jets from one counter to the next then to the fridge then the stove.

"Quinn," she whispers it but knows that Quinn hears her.

"Don't."

"We need to talk about this."

"You're a liar and I can't even stand to look at you right now, let alone talk to you."

She sighs. She's almost upset that Quinn is being like this. That she isn't even giving her a chance to explain.

But really, what else can she expect? Maybe if Rachel had never invited her over last month and maybe if Sienn hadn't openly flirted with her. Maybe if Quinn hadn't seen them holding hands at the table and maybe if Rachel had made more of a show of rejecting her then perhaps Quinn would question the authenticity of the photos, but Rachel has screwed herself in such a way that it is expected that Quinn would believe these lies.

Because for a moment, Rachel was stupid enough to think that this was a good idea.

_But I just wanted her to be jealous, not furious with me._

"Fine, then don't talk. You can just listen. You've always been the better listener anyway."

Quinn doesn't say anything, but she doesn't yell at her to get out so she thinks that at least counts for something.

"Those pictures aren't real, Quinn. And I know you're upset right now, but deep down, I think you know that. You've known me your entire life. We've known _each other _our entire lives. And you know, I am no cheater."

"Says the girl that had me do her math homework almost every day for four years in high school?" Quinn shoots back fiercely.

Rachel sighs. "That's different and you know it. Quinn, please just listen. I know-"

But a pot slamming in the sink silences her immediately.

"No, no. Just stop it Rachel. You don't know! You don't know anything! You don't know how I feel or what I'm thinking."

"Well, maybe if you just talked to me then-"

"Then what?! Then you wouldn't have cheated?!"

"I didn't cheat!" She throws her hands up nearly ready to give up.

The problem with them, the only problem really, is that they are both so head strong. Both so determined to be right, to have the last word.

"Oh come on Rachel! Don't treat me like I'm fucking stupid! I saw the pictures! What's worse, is that I had to hear it from Sam! Sam! My best friend called me at work to tell me that my fiancée was all over a magazine making out with some other woman! And thank god that he did, because if I had heard it from anyone else, I would've lost my shit! After all of this 'yeah we're just so happy' you've been spewing to anyone who will listen and now this? Do you even know how fucking humiliating this is?!"

"Quinn, please don't curse. And don't yell at me." She says it quietly, but firmly enough that Quinn hears the warning in her voice.

She's not going to continue a conversation like this.

"Rachel," she says, taking a calming breath before bending over to put something in the oven.

"We're not doing this right now. We'll sit through dinner with your dads, I'll be pleasant as always but once they leave, we need to figure out what we're going to do."

"About what?" She's asking but she doesn't want to know.

"You know what. You can't stay here."

Rachel's eyes widen for only a moment before closing tightly to keep the tears at bay.

"Quinn, we need to talk about this. You can't just end things like this."

"I didn't. _You did. _If you want something else, _someone _else, then by all means, I don't want to stand in your way."

Quinn is not the giving up type and the fact that she's just letting it all slip through her fingers is driving Rachel insane.

"You're…you're not even going to fight for this? I mean, what happened to loving me? What happened to not wanting to lose me or not being able to go back to being just friends? Was that all just for show?"

The accusations make Quinn shake her head furiously.

"You've got to be kidding me! Of course I love you Rachel but apparently it's just me!"

"But it's _not_! I am telling you Quinn, I didn't cheat on you! I would _never _cheat on you! I don't know where they got these photos from, maybe set or something but outside of work, I have never kissed her! I have only ever done what the script has asked of me! Nothing more but nothing less than my _job!_"

"Oh, so the script told you to have sex with her?!"

Rachel blanches.

"What?"

Quinn doesn't even look at her, thinking for sure that she has caught her in a lie.

"Page 22, the story about what's on the cover. Have you not read it?"

Rachel shakes her head, but Quinn doesn't see. She only hears silence and assumes that's her cue to proceed.

"Oh, it's very juicy. It's the tale of the secret romance between Rachel Berry and Sienn Cortier! How their fake stage romance grew into something more real and intimate. And I quote, 'these two lovers seems to have more in common than just their love of the stage'. It's pretty well written, if I'm being honest." Quinn laughs sardonically and just keeps talking, finally letting it all out. "There are more pictures too. Of you and her, naked…"

"Quinn, I don't know where they got those pictures from, but-"

"But what?" Quinn sounds all but defeated at this point. "But you're sorry? But you never meant for me to find out like this? What Rachel? Hmm? I mean, there's nothing to say that could make this better. But you know what? It's fine because this is what we wanted. We wanted to see each other happy right? So be happy Rachel. Be happy that it's all out in the open now. You can do whatever you want now."

Rachel shakes her head.

_Why is she insisting on playing a martyr? _

"So that's it? You're fine with me leaving? Walking away? Being with someone else? Cuddling with someone else? Kissing someone else? Making love to someone else?"

"You've already done all of that anyway!" Quinn yells. "What difference does it make now? And what do you want me to say Rachel? You weren't really mine anyway, so I can't be mad can I?!"

This can't be all. This cannot be it. Rachel cannot bring herself to walk away like this.

She stares at Quinn as she chops onions and in an instant it all flashes before her. All of their late night talks, all of the stolen, unnecessarily long kisses. The secret smiles and lingering touches. The way their naked bodies fit perfectly in their shared bed. All of it comes flooding back to her and she cannot bring herself to leave without knowing. Without _asking. _

"Quinn, for just one minute, forget about the pictures. Forget about the article. Forget about every single thing up until this point," she's more nervous than she's ever been in her entire life but she stands tall and speaks without wavering.

She opens her mouth the first time and nothing comes out.

She hesitates because she thinks for a split second, she does what she's been doing for the last year. She thinks about the consequences. About losing Quinn. But then of course she remembers that that's what happening right now.

_Deep breath. Deep breath. _

"Do you love me?"

She's standing by the door and Quinn is standing over by the counter, now chopping tomatoes and Rachel briefly commends her for being able to make a meal and sustain a serious argument at the same time.

But Quinn doesn't cease her motions nor does she respond.

"Quinn, I'm serious. I need an answer. Do you _love_ me?"

"Of course I love you Rachel, but that's not enough apparently! You-"

"No, no, listen Quinn. I'm not talking about the 'let's marry each other because we're best friends anyway' kind of love. I'm not talking about the 'I've known you all of my life and I can't picture it without you' friend kind of love. I'm talking about the…the kind of love that eats away at you from the inside out. The kind of love that tells you to let me go because you actually think I'll be happier with someone else. Do you love me like _that_?"

She takes another deep breath and jumps from the cliff.

"Because I love _you _like that. I love you like I've never loved anyone before. In fact…you're the only person I've ever loved. The only person I've ever looked at and said to myself, 'Yeah, she's the one'. And if you…if you love me like that Quinn, then you can just say so. For once…we can just _say so_."

Quinn has stopped chopping and the room is absolutely silent.

Her heart is pounding out of her chest as she waits for Quinn to say something. Anything.

But she's met with silence. For one minute. Then two. Then three.

Quinn has a death grip on the counter but still says nothing.

And as the minutes tick by, her hope begins to wane.

_She doesn't love me. _

The reality is crushing and it feels as though she cannot breathe. She tries to take in oxygen but it feels as if she's drowning in the silence.

_She doesn't love me. _

She wonders what's supposed to happen next. She admits that she didn't think this far ahead. She hadn't considered Quinn not loving her in the moment because the kisses and the touches and…all of it just seemed so real.

She takes a steadying breath, deciding to save herself any further embarrassment, and turns to leave.

But then she hears her speak. And though it's not the three words she asked for, something is infinitely better than nothing.

"I…I know it sounds crazy, I know I was only a few months old when you were born but sometimes…I swear I remember it. I remember seeing you for the very first time and I remember how it felt." She doesn't approach her or move at all really, but she's talking and she considers that a win.

Finally, Quinn sets the knife down and turns to look at Rachel. She is crying and Rachel wants desperately to stop the tears for marring her flawless features. But she stands perfectly still and waits.

"It felt…like it always feels when I look at you. Like…I'm seeing you for the very first time."

Rachel swallows, unsure of where this is going.

"You want me to tell you that I love you in a way that burns me up? And consumes me? In a way that allows me to put your needs before mine every single time? You want me to tell you I love you in this new and indescribable way, but…I don't."

The first tear of what she expects to be many cascades down her cheek.

Quinn now walks towards her slowly, but she backs up. She doesn't want her pity. She doesn't want her false comfort.

Unfortunately, the door behind her leaves no room for movement and she's forced to either stay standing at the door or push herself into the dining room.

So she just stands, wide eyed, silent tears falling from her face.

Finally, after what feels like seconds and hours all in one, Quinn reaches her. She looks at her and just stares for a moment. Then reaches her hand up and touches Rachel's trembling lips.

"The way I feel about you isn't _new_ to me. I have loved you since the day I first saw you. And for 22 years, that love has consumed me. It has eaten away at me from the inside out. It has lead me away from MIT and even Columbia and it has lead me here to be with _you_. You're asking me if I love you and you expect that since you're asking me differently, I'll answer differently. But every single time I've ever told you I love you, I've meant it in the same way I always have."

She scans Quinn's face for any hint of a lie or fabrication but can find no evidence of such a thing.

They're staring at each other and the only sound filling the air is the shared breath between them.

"I am in love with you Rachel Barbra Berry. And I…I am heartbroken right now at the thought of you with someone else."

She leans her head forward so that their foreheads are connected and at that point, Rachel can feel that Quinn is shaking as well.

Rachel takes the chance to be strong and honest and brings her hands up to cup Quinn's chin and pull her away so that they can look each other in the eye.

"I am in love with you too Lucy Quinn Fabray and the thought of being with someone else makes me physically ill. I know you won't believe me, but those pictures aren't real. I mean…they are, but it's not how it seems. Those pictures are us outside but they have to be altered or something, because I promise you with everything that I am I would _never _hurt you like that."

Quinn just stares, probably gauging the sincerity of her words.

"I guess…I guess this is how you know you've made it to the big leagues right? They slander your name in celebrity magazines."

Rachel's smile is immediate and her laughter is music to both of their ears.

Quinn pulls back from her arms a little further and looks at her in wonder, like she said, as if she's seeing her again for the very first time.

"I love you."

The three words are the same as always, but the conviction behind them is earth shattering. Quinn's voice sounds so serious and stern, as if it's imperative that Rachel know this information.

She wraps her arms around Quinn's neck suddenly and pulls her into a tight hug, but Quinn doesn't complain as she holds on for dear life.

"I love you too. So much Quinn."

It's mumbled into Quinn's neck but she imagines that she's heard her just fine.

They must stand there for a while, just living in an unforgettable moment, when the timer to the stove breaks the silence and the moment.

Quinn pulls away abruptly to go retrieve the finished dish, but Rachel grabs her hand and pulls her back quickly.

She surges forward without warning and presses her lips firmly to Quinn's.

The kiss is slow and passionate and their tongues and teeth collide languidly, as if doing a well rehearsed dance together.

Though Rachel would've been happy to keep the kiss going forever, she reluctantly pulls away.

"You get the food. I should go get my dads. I'm sure traffic is going to be awful."

Quinn nods and looks back at the stove before turning to steal one more kiss.

"I love you," she whispers it again against Quinn's lips and she can feel them turn up into a smile before she lets her go.

She leaves the kitchen before Quinn can respond but even as she's walking away, through the swinging doors she hears her reply.

"Best news I've heard all day."

Rachel shakes her head and smiles as she heads to the front door to put on shoes and grab her purse.

There's still so much they need to discuss. Still so much to fix between them. But Rachel couldn't care less. The point is that they _can_ be fixed. That this isn't the end at all.

In fact, it's just the beginning.

**######**

**I know it's short but I wanted to get something to you sooner than later. I will probably get another update out this week to make up for the length. Thank you all so much for your continued support as you follow, favorite, review or even just read the story. **

**Until next time! :)**

**Title by Taylor Swift**


	21. You Are In Love Pt 2

The only sound heard is the clinking of the metal silverware against the glass plates.

_They know. They have to know, _Quinn thinks to herself.

Unfortunately, she hasn't had a single moment alone with Rachel to ask her if she and her fathers had explicitly talked about the photos, so she doesn't want to bring it up at the table, just in case.

But still, she figures that they have to know. She had peered down from their apartment while Rachel was gone to see at least 2 or 3 photographers at any given time and so her fathers at least had to hear their questions as they walked by, right?

She looks up at them and finds them eating silently, which is already concerning, but they're also refusing to make eye contact.

Quinn rolls her eyes. _Yeah, okay. They know. _

"Great bread, baby."

She looks over at Rachel to find her smiling awkwardly, obviously trying to do anything to get a conversation going.

"Thanks, it's called rosemary bread. I got a recipe online and it was easy to make at home. Though, I was a little worried I overcooked it. I admit, I sort of forgot about it in the oven for about a minute after the timer went off."

"No no, it's perfect. Even better than the…what was that bread from a couple of weeks ago?"

"The asiago?"

"No, I loved the asiago…the one with the butter?"

"Oh! The Italian bread with the red wine butter?"

"Yes! That's the one! I loved that one…and this is even better, so—"

At some point during this exchange, they fail to notice the incredulous looks from both men and eventually, this conversation seems to be the straw that breaks Leroy's back.

"Oh my goodness, I'm sorry Hiram, I know I promised not to, but I can't stand this anymore!"

He drops his fork and Quinn looks over to see Hiram puts his fork down gently and lean back, running his hands through his thinning hair.

"Uh, dads what's—"

"Rachel, I'm going to give you one opportunity to tell me the truth. Did you do the things they accused you of in that trashy magazine? Did you hurt our little girl?"

Rachel's jaw immediately drops.

"What?! Are you serious?"

"Answer the question, Rachel," Leroy says sternly.

"Wait wait, I'm sorry, not only am I offended that you're even asking, but I am outraged that you care more about Quinn than your actual daughter, who is being slandered in these 'trashy magazines'!"

"She can't even give me a straight answer, Ram. Do you hear this?" Leroy leans back and exhales deeply.

Quinn cannot believe the situation in front of her. On the one hand, she's upset because her fathers really should know Rachel better than that. But on the other hand, she's so happy that they are on her side, standing up for her, coming to her defense.

_Even if it is completely unnecessary, it's better than the "I told you so" I'd get from my own dad, _she leans her elbows on the table and places her head on her hands.

The arguing still going on back and forth combined with the realization that her father will surely hear about this and will more than likely _still_ not call to check on her, makes this all too much to bear.

She tries to take a deep breath, but the pain becomes overwhelming and she abruptly pushes away from the table and walks towards their room, closes the door with more force than she means to and throws herself face down on the bed.

She can still hear the noise, but she pulls Rachel's pillow over her head to shut it out.

Which is why she doesn't hear when someone slips through their bedroom door, but she feels the bed move and pulls the pillow away momentarily to see who it is.

"Hi," she says before covering her face again.

Rachel laughs, so at least that's something.

"Hi Quinn," she says it softly and with so much reverence in her voice.

With no pillow, Rachel just leans back against the headboard and sighs.

"I'm sorry about them."

Quinn just shakes her head. "I should be saying the same to you. Besides…it's not them."

There are a few moments of silence before Rachel pulls the pillow gently away to reveal Quinn's sullen face.

"Then what is it baby?"

Even in the middle of all of the craziness, hearing Rachel call her baby makes her smile. It's small and it doesn't fix anything, but it makes her feel better.

Rachel smiles down at her and just because she can she leans down to press a kiss to the corner of her lips.

"I love you," she whispers gently against her cheek.

Quinn's smile widens.

"Do you even know how good it feels to be able to say that to you? And to know that it means the same to you that it does to me?"

Quinn just nods. Knowing exactly what she means. There is so much freedom now. And she can't get over how amazing it feels either.

"I love you too."

Rachel beams down at her and she imagines that they probably look like idiots to any flies on the wall, but she doesn't care. She has wanted this for so long. Longer than she even realized and having it in front of her now is the closest thing to heaven that she can imagine.

Quinn sits up a little and brings her head to Rachel's lap and just takes a few deep breaths before answering Rachel's initial question.

"Your dads are… crazy." Rachel only snorts in agreement as she runs her fingers through Quinn's hair.

"They're the definition of eccentric and I'm sure if I looked up the phrase "helicopter parent", I'd find a picture of them from third grade dropping in every hour at school to make sure your hair was still okay."

Rachel lets out a groan and removes her hands from Quinn's hair, upset that she's bringing up one of many incidents they had vowed never to speak of. But Quinn doesn't let her hands get far. She grabs them and pulls them to her lips, placing a gentle kiss on each delicate finger.

"But they're here."

There's a lengthy silence before Rachel says softly, with a little mirth to her tone, "Yeah, that's true. They're too much to handle 99.9% of the time and yet I'd still rather have them here than not."

Quinn nods, glad that Rachel gets it.

"That's how I feel about him. He's…he's a lot of bad qualities and awful choices but I…I'd still rather he be here than not."

Rachel nods but says nothing. She's not sure what else can be said so they just let the words fill the air.

"The worst part is that he's going to see this…that cover, I mean, and he's going to think he was right. He's going to be so smug about it. Probably tell my mother how he called this from a mile away. And I just-it just makes me so mad," she grits out between clenched teeth.

"I know baby, I know." She feels a gentle kiss to her temple.

"I just…I wish we could just tell them. Tell the whole world that these rumors and shit…it's not going to break us up, a few pictures can't ruin 23 years of…this amazing thing we have."

Quinn looks up into her eyes and even from this angle, with no make-up on, hair somewhat frazzled, she's still the most beautiful woman.

Especially when she begins to smile widely. But then she abruptly lifts herself from the bed and Quinn's head hits the mattress with a thump.

"Uhh, you okay?"

"I'm fine! You just gave me a great idea!"

She runs from the room in a frenzy and Quinn just shakes her head and closes her eyes. She can hear Rachel's fathers asking from a distance if everything is okay but Rachel's response is muffled as she flits around the room.

A few moments later, Rachel approaches in the threshold of their bedroom.

"Hey, Quinn? Can you do me a favor?"

Quinn's initial response is "anything" but she swallows that and instead lets out a tired, "Depends…"

"Just…act like you love me?"

After everything they've been through both today and in the last year or so, she can't help the laugh that tumbles past her lips.

"Sure, I can pretend for a little while longer, if I must."

Rachel's smile lights up the room. "Also, if you could look busy, that would be great."

"Busy for what?" Quinn turns to get an answer, but Rachel is already gone. She lays there for a minute before deciding to just comply and so she sits up and reaches for her laptop. Opening it, she decides she really should check her emails.

She's sifting through mail while also browsing new additions to Netflix when she hears a commotion in the living room.

She stares through the open door but can't see anyone from here. She tries to listen closer, but she's only making out bits and pieces.

She struggles internally. Should she get up and go see what's going on? But didn't Rachel also tell her to look busy? She shifts her gaze from the computer to the door and back again before deciding to break the rules a bit. But she takes the laptop, just in case it really is imperative that she look busy.

As she walks down the short hallway, the voices become clearer.

"And these are my dads that raised me to be so great. Say hi!"

"Hello!"

"Hi there!"

"What are you guys doing this evening?"

"Uh, well, we were sitting here discussing the merits of the health system with the affordable care act in place. Would you like to chime in?"

Quinn laughs out loud, knowing that Rachel would never chime in on a subject like that.

The sound of her harmonious laugh, however, shifts the attention her way and that's when Quinn notices that Rachel is holding up her phone towards her.

"Oh, hi baby! And this, as you're all aware, is my gorgeous fiancée Quinn Fabray! Say hi Quinn?"

"Uh," she lifts her hand in a non-committal wave, "Hey?"

She steps closer into the living room, even more confused by what's going on. "What are you doing Rach? Are you filming?"

"It's a video, a periscope Quinn!"

She tries to think of where she's heard that word before.

And then she remembers Roger mentioning something about it.

_Periscope, it's like a live streaming video service, Quinn. How have you not heard of this? Stocks are through the roof, right now._

"You're filming this live while I seriously look like I just crawled out of a foot?!"

Everyone in the room laughs. Everyone but her.

She immediately turns around and tries to escape, but Rachel quickly follows.

"Oh come on, you look fine."

"Raaachel, stop."

She walks through their bedroom and hears Rachel following quickly behind her.

"Rach, no! Not in here, our room is a mess!"

Rachel scoffs and turns the phone camera around so that it's focusing on her face, instead of the "messy" room.

"I will respect her wishes and not show you the room, but just know that it's perfectly clean. Not a thing out of place."

"Oh really? So those aren't your socks on the floor then?"

Rachel turns the lens around again, camera aimed at the socks.

"Oh goodness, what an absolute pigsty."

Quinn rolls her eyes, but can't help the small smile that plants itself on her face.

"There it is! There's that smile!" Rachel turns the phone towards Quinn's annoyed, but smiling face.

"See guys? She's not as uptight as she seems! She smiles!"

Rachel walks a little closer to the bed where Quinn has repositioned herself in front of her laptop.

Quinn looks over, staring directly at Rachel. "Yeah, but only for you."

"Aww," Rachel coos and turns the camera around so that it can capture her placing a kiss on Quinn's cheek.

"I love you."

Quinn just grunts in response.

"Come onnnn, do it for the periscope."

Quinn laughs again, understanding the reference.

"I refuse."

"Is this because I apparently cheated and slept with my co-star?"

Quinn rolls her eyes and smiles wider. "As if you would dare cheat on me. Please. No, this is because you never pick up your socks."

Rachel gasps, completely scandalized.

"Why I never!"

"Oh yeah, I know! You _never _pick up any of your clothes. In fact, give me that," she reaches for the phone and Rachel doesn't put up much of a fight.

She stares into the camera and scoots back towards the head of the bed.

"I just want to make it very clear that she is the lucky one in this relationship. I know you all think she's a wonderful woman, and believe me she absolutely is, but just know that I am not the bad guy here. I am but a mere victim. A victim to her snoring and clothes left all over and the constant singing and Wii karaoke contests that she challenges me to knowing she's going to kick my ass."

"And don't forget the chronic cheating!"

Quinn nods, looking over at her, ignoring the camera, "How could I? You have six copies of the magazine all over the apartment!"

"It's my first time being on a cover, Quinn, I'm not just going to throw them out!"

Quinn looks back at the camera, "Not only is she a lying cheater, she's a narcissist too."

Rachel laughs and crawls up to where Quinn is leaning against the headboard. She snuggles up next to her and lays her head on her shoulder closing her eyes.

"Are you done turning the world against me? My dads wanna play Monopoly."

Quinn lowers her head so that hers is leaning on Rachel's. She turns to press a kiss to her head and then laughs a little.

"You used my shampoo."

"I ran out."

"No you didn't. I just bought you more."

"Fine, I just like smelling like you."

"Creep."

"I love you too Quinn."

Hearing it again, and knowing just how true it is, makes her forget about the camera and the world around her.

Quinn drops the phone to the bed so that the view is nothing but a white ceiling and the only sound filling the air is the sound of her repeating those precious words right back.

**######**

**So sorry for the delay but I seriously have had zero time to write. If this is awful, it's because I wrote three or four hundred words every three days until it was done. LOL *hides face in shame***

**But seriously, I've really missed you guys and as always I thank you for your patience! I hope everyone had a wonderful Valentine's Day or even a lovely Single's Awareness Day today! :D **

**Until next time!**


	22. Oasis

Her phone has been blowing up all day. She already had a Twitter account before Rachel even knew what it was. And because of her family name, she had a few hundred followers but never in her life had she been tweeted at so much like this.

People have been tweeting at her nonstop since Rachel's periscope went viral the night before. She's surprised to find that most of them are positive as well.

"_You two make such a cute couple!" _

_"__Seriously you guys are officially my OTP." _She has to look that one up, having no clue about an…OTP.

And of course, the still trending hashtag #FaberryFan used in nearly every tweet sent her way.

For the most part, she's turned her phone on silent and ignored it as she works. She's gotten a few cute screenshots from Rachel, whose been sending some of the funniest/sweetest tweets her way, but otherwise she ignores her phone. That is…until it lights up with a text.

From her father.

Her heart pounds out of her chest. Her breathing quickens and she instinctively reaches out for her phone before pulling her hand back.

_It has to be a joke_, she thinks. Or if it isn't, if he truly is texting her, it's probably to tell her that he was right. She just knows it. So she doesn't open it.

Instead, she flips the phone over and tries to go back to working.

But she can't. She can't focus on this graph knowing that her father, whom she hasn't spoken to in over a year, has reached out to her. She _has _to know what it says, even though reading it means running the risk of her heart breaking all over again.

She reaches out to flip the phone back over and is about to slide to unlock, just as Roger peeks over into her cubicle.

"Hey Faberry, got a sec?" She rolls her eyes. He's been calling her that since lunch when she stupidly told him about her and Rachel's new portmanteau.

"That isn't in reference to just me Roger so you really can't call me that," she says weakly as she throws her phone back on the desk and stands, resigned to just reading it when she gets home. She only has an hour left in the office anyway.

* * *

She's just getting off, just pushing through the heavy glass doors to leave the building when her phone rings. She had just turned on the volume in the elevator and so she's still holding the phone in her hand and she can clearly see who is calling.

She stares for almost a full minute at a family picture. She stares at the words "Dad", blinking profusely to check to make sure she's read it right. And just before she gets the courage to swipe and answer…it stops ringing.

Even though she breathes a sigh of relief, she also considers calling back. She considers maybe even just reading his text. But she doesn't get a chance to do either before her phone lights up again. With the same name and picture as before.

And that's when she begins to worry.

_Something must be wrong, _she thinks as she unlocks the phone and brings it to her ear.

"…dad?" She says slowly, half expecting it to be her mother or Annie because there's just no way—

"Quinn," he breathes out sounding utterly relieved.

"Yeah is…is everything okay? Why are you calling?" She doesn't mean to sound so rude or abrupt, but she has to know that everyone is okay.

"No…no…" Her heart rate speeds up as it is just what she's feared. She quickens her pace and, though she usually takes the subway home, she stretches out her arm to hail a cab. She's already thinking about 2 plane tickets and calling her boss to let him know she'll need a few days off when he speaks up.

"What's…what's been going on up there? Kane said you've been mentioned online a thousand times since last night. He said there's an article about you…and Rachel."

She stops dead in her tracks even as the cabbie pulls over for her. So everyone is fine and it's just as she feared.

He called to gloat. To throw her supposed stupidity in her face.

"Dad it's fine, it's fine."

"Apparently it's not Quinn. Kane said there was some sort of article that's got her naked and with another…woman. Is that true? I couldn't bear to look."

She wants to deny it so badly because telling him it's true seems so much worse but what's the point? He's not going to believe her. Kane has been her father's trusted right hand man and best friend for almost 40 years.

"It's…not what it seems like, but yeah, there's an article. But none of it's true!" She nearly yells that, wanting to make it abundantly clear that Rachel is no cheater.

"Well, of course not!" He huffs out and she swears she can hear him running his hands over his face. "Of course it's not. Rachel's a good girl." And he says it so quietly that it seems more to himself than to her. But if he knows that the article is false, why is he calling? If not to tell her she had been wrong, then what could he possibly want?

"Yeah…" She doesn't want to taint the conversation with her skepticism and distrust of his intentions but she also _needs _to know. "Why…why are you calling dad?"

The silence is deafening and it drags. Until he sighs. "I just wanted to make sure you were alright. And…and I've missed you Quinn."

She scoffs. "My number has been the same since I moved here dad. I even have a house phone, which you are well aware of. I've lived in the same place you moved me into sophomore year of college. If you missed me, you could've called. You could've fucking flown in."

"Now Quinn-" His voice is stern and she knows that he is just moments away from reprimanding her, but she is in no mood.

In an instant, 13 months of fury and frustration at his cold indifference towards her absence accumulates in her stomach and spews out like vomit.

"No dad, just stop. Seriously. I don't even know why you're calling. I really don't. You've had every opportunity to call, text, TWEET me even! You have had every chance to make this right…and you didn't. Annie called dad. _Annie. _My childhood nanny called to check in. Flew in to make sure I was alright. To get coffee and see a show. And yet you, _my father, _couldn't be bothered. And not only that, but you were petty enough to keep mom away as well."

"Quinn, I didn't-"

"Yes you did dad! It doesn't even matter what you're going to say! That you didn't mean for things to be this way or that you didn't keep mom from calling! Yes, you did! You know she doesn't do a damn thing without your permission."

"Quinnie please. Let me just talk to you. I can fly in tonight. We can talk tonight. Please."

For months after walking out, she had longed to hear him say those words. That they could talk things through, that there wasn't an irreparable amount of damage done to their relationship. To the Fabray family. But now, now that she has everything she wanted all those months ago right in front of her, she simply shakes her head.

"Dad, just stop. Please. If you're calling to vindicate yourself…if you're calling to make yourself feel like a less shitty parent, that's fine. But if this is some sort of an apology, which I'm sure it isn't because you're never wrong..it's not accepted."

He sighs deeply and she waits. For what, she's not sure, but she waits for him to say something.

"Well…right. I uh, just wanted to be sure that you were alright. And you seem to be so…I'll let you go Quinn."

"Yeah. Give mom and Annie my love." And she hangs up. Before he can hear any more of the utter despair in her voice. Before he can hear the tears in her eyes. She lifts her left arm to hail another cab while she uses her right to wipe her eyes dry.

She's certain he shed no tears over her absence so she's determined to show him the same frigid treatment.

* * *

They're lying in bed. Rachel is scrolling through her new Instagram account and Quinn is reviewing paperwork. And by reviewing, she's really just rereading the same facts and figures over and over again, waiting for Rachel to decide she's ready for bed.

Dinner was a quiet affair, with Rachel too engulfed in her own work to really notice Quinn's quiet, sullen demeanor. She doesn't fault her for the lack of attention though. She knows with just a month until opening night, Rachel is beyond stressed about the show and realistically, she doesn't know if she's ready to talk about what transpired between her and her father today anyway.

It all feels too fresh to discuss without shedding tears.

So she remains silent through dinner and puts away the dishes by herself quietly.

She showers and crawls into bed with her laptop and a pad of notes and says next to nothing.

And she thinks for sure that the night will end without incident and she can silently cry herself to sleep.

But then she remembers that she lives with Rachel Berry. That she is _in love _with Rachel Berry. And even when it doesn't seem like Rachel is paying attention, she _feels_ everything around her. Which means she can probably feel the tension and sadness radiating from Quinn.

"Hey baby?" She hears her put her notes down on her nightstand.

"Baaaby?" Finally Quinn can't help herself. She looks over at Rachel, with her hair up in a messy bun and an extra-large NYADA shirt hanging off her shoulder, and can't help but smile.

"Yes love?"

Rachel's smile widens into a full on grin. She scoots a little closer, moving Quinn's laptop and legal pad to a safe spot on the bed before straddling her.

"Hi," she whispers, smiling down at Quinn.

"Hi," she breathes out.

"I missed you today." Rachel moves her hair gently from her face and gives her forehead a kiss.

And in an instant, surrounded by the love and compassion of the love of her life, she breaks down and a single tear trickles down her cheek.

"Quinn?" She knows she can't keep this from her. Not that she really even wants to.

"Baby, what's wrong?"

She opens her mouth to respond and instead lets out a sob as the tears begin cascading down her face.

"Quinn, you're scaring me…what's wrong?" Rachel is trying to wipe away the tears as quickly as possible but there are just too many and when she realizes that fact, she chooses a different tactic.

She wraps her arms around Quinn's shoulders and pulls her in for a hug that, while awkward for Quinn in any other circumstance, is exactly what she needs. She clings to Rachel and cries into her oversized t-shirt with no shame.

"It's okay baby. Whatever it is…I'm right here and it's going to be okay."

And though the tears don't subside, though the conversation still cuts her to the core, she believes her.

Because Rachel makes even the worst days okay.

* * *

"He called today," she whispers into the silent atmosphere.

"What?" She feels Rachel lift her head from its place on Quinn's shoulder. "He…as in your dad?"

She nods.

"What…what did he want?"

"I…I don't really know? He..he called to check on me, I think?"

"Are you serious? _Now?! _After a _year _of nothing?!"

And the furiousness and fire in Rachel's tone is exactly what she needs to hear.

"That's what I said."

Rachel lays her head back down. "Well, is that exactly what you said?"

"Pretty much. I told him that I didn't understand why he was finally reaching out and that I didn't want his apology. Because it wouldn't be accepted anyway."

Rachel lifts her head at that. "Is that why he called Quinn? To apologize?"

She turns her head to see Rachel's outline in the pitch black room. "Uh, I don't know? I just assumed. It just seemed like that's where he was headed but I didn't really let him talk."

"What? Why not? Quinn…no offense, but you've been waiting a year for him to call and apologize and now he does and you don't want it?"

Rachel's voice sounds a little sharp but she ignores it and closes her eyes.

"No, Rachel. I don't."

"….can I have a reason why? I mean, we were just talking about how you missed him…and your mom even! Why not try to make amends if he's willing?"

"Because he's not Rach!"

"You don't know that Quinn! You never let him talk apparently!"

"I'm sorry, so now it's _my _fault that I have a shitty relationship with him?!"

She sighs, "That's not at all what I'm saying, I just don't know why you can't at least talk to him? Be reasonable and just listen to what he has to say! I know he hurt you but-"

"No Rachel. He didn't hurt me. I don't care about what he said about me. It's what he said about _you _that I'm not willing to forgive or overlook."

"What does it even matter? You've never even told me what he said. And you know, I'm starting to feel like that's a crutch, an excuse. If you want to be petty then fine by me, I just think it's silly to pass up a chance to work things out with him."

And somehow, she's been made out to be the villain. And she's so tempted to tell Rachel everything. All of the negative, hurtful things he said about her. How she would never make it on Broadway. How he thought she would take advantage of Quinn's generosity and love for her. She wants to tell Rachel so that he'll stop looking like a hero in this story.

But she loves her and she can't do that. She can't erase every good memory between her dad and Rachel just so that she can feel the same pain as her.

So instead, she turns her body towards her side and closes her eyes.

"Oh that's very mature Quinn," she lets out a long dramatic sigh. "Fine, let's not talk about it. But you should know that I'm not hurt by what he may or may not have said. And if you're holding on to a grudge, on my behalf, it's not necessary. I _want _you to forgive him."

She feels Rachel settle in on her own side and for a few minutes she hears nothing.

"Ugh, I'm not going to get any sleep over here, I already know it." She feels the sheets rustle for a moment before a slender arm wraps around her stomach and a hand slips into her own. Legs entangle themselves between hers and Rachel settles in for the night against her.

"I know we're fighting or whatever, but no sense waking up in the morning looking like a troll because I didn't get a good night's rest. Which I'm quickly finding I don't when you're on the other side of the world."

Even with her eyes closed, she rolls them.

"We're not fighting Rachel. I'm not forgiving him and that's the end of that. I can forgive and forget a lot of things. I can overlook hurtful comments about me but I won't tolerate someone speaking about you the way he did. And it's not a crutch, it's loyalty. It's commitment. To you and to us. We're a team and when someone talks shit about you, I take it personally. And if he had slipped up and said any of those things to your face, I wouldn't even have taken his call today. So you can be as upset as you want to be but I'm not going to apologize for loving you and I'm not going to accept his sorry excuse for a sorry either."

Rachel says nothing for a moment and Quinn resigns herself to just going to sleep. But then, she feels the thin arms tighten around her and feels a kiss on her shoulder.

"I love you so much. More than I ever thought I could love anyone. So I get it. Someone said you weren't even that cute on Twitter today and I went off…so I get it."

It's not really even close to the same thing, but she smiles to herself because she loves the sentiment and thought. So she squeezes Rachel's hand and scoots back into her body a little more.

As she finally succumbs to sleep, she hears Rachel whisper into her hair, "Goodnight, my love."

And even after the worst day, she sleeps better than she ever has.

Because Rachel Berry always makes her bad days better.

**######**

**Back! And I won't ever be gone this long again! Thanks for the reviews, favorites and follows while I was gone! They encouraged me everyday! Until Next Time! :) **


	23. Gone, Gone, Gone

The week passes by quickly. It's hectic and chaotic, with extended practices due to 2 more interviews. She's become such an overnight success, which worries her a bit because she doesn't want just 15 minutes in the spotlight. Especially now that she's had even a small taste of fame. She loves it. The attention, the applause, the smiles she receives from random strangers.

No one has seen her perform yet, so she hasn't signed more than 20 autographs, as they're still pretty unsure of her actual talent. But each time she does, she swells with pride and calls her fathers to recap the experience.

Yes, fame is everything she's ever wanted and yet…

_Quinn is nowhere to be found. _

She knows it's probably karma or something, for being so absent when Quinn was so desperate to spend time with her, but that doesn't make it any less depressing. And really, she gets it. She knows that Quinn's still reeling from the conversation with her dad a week ago.

She's been sullen and withdrawn, something she's never been before and so she doesn't even know how to fix a problem she's never faced.

Quinn has always been the strong one. Quinn has always been the resourceful one. The one to see every silver lining and light at the end of each tunnel.

And it's hitting her, while on stage of the theater that she'll be performing in in just 26 days.

They're a team now. Quinn can't be the only strong one. Quinn can't be the only one to see them through tough times. Sometimes, she has to do it. This time, Quinn needs her to do it, even if she doesn't realize it.

"I'm sorry! Can we take a break?"

Someone is mid line as she screams it. Riley looks her way, startled, and simply nods. Probably not sure of what else to say, given such a sudden outburst.

She mumbles a quick thanks before running off stage towards her shitty excuse for a dressing room. She has yet to decorate it, so all it really holds is an old recliner and a bench in front of her mirror. A gold star hangs just over the door inside of the room, courtesy of her father's and a note Quinn slipped into her lunch one day is tapped to the mirror.

"May I been the moon to your star?" Underneath is a sad drawing of Quinn lying in a crescent moon and Rachel blowing a star kiss. It's terrible and it took Quinn's explanation for her to even understand what she was looking at but everything Quinn did was perfect in her eyes and so it had earned its space on the mirror.

She smiles looking at the note briefly, only confirming what she must do, before rummaging through her bag until she finds her phone.

She ignores her two missed texts and dials a number she learned at age 6 and never forgot.

"Hello?"

For a moment, she's stunned into silence.

She didn't expect him to answer the phone himself. She had expected Annie to answer, like always. She would chat with her for a few minutes, calm her nerves and _then _ask for Mr. Fabray.

"Who's there?"

_Now or never. _

"Hello, Mr. Fabray. It's Rachel Berry."

There's silence for a long pause, then to her utter surprise, a gentle laugh.

"Rachel, you've been calling her since you were 4. I know your voice, you don't need to tell me your last name."

She opens her mouth…then closes it. Then opens it again but only lets out a strangled noise.

"Uh, yeah. Right. I'm sorry."

"No need for apologies. What can I do for you?"

She pauses. What can he do for her? How could he possibly begin to fix things with Quinn, which is all she needs him to do?

And then, because of her silence, it seems to hit him that this isn't 18 years ago. She isn't a little kid calling to talk to his daughter about new dolls and sleeping over. In fact, she hasn't called the house in over a year. All at once, she can hear the worry in his voice.

"Is Quinnie okay? Are you okay?"

The second question surprises her, leaving her thinking that maybe there's hope.

She also can't help but reflect on the sad reality that to receive a phone call from her means that something is wrong. What used to be such a normal occurrence has become such a rare oddity that it _worries_ him.

She thinks out loud, "It shouldn't be this way, Mr. Fabray."

There's a long pause and she waits it out with baited breath.

"I know. I-Did she tell you I called last week?"

His voice sounds pained, as if it's killing him to admit that he's been trying.

"She did. And I know that she's stubborn," she wants to add "just like you" but this just doesn't seem like the right time. "But she still loves you and misses you. I think it's just going to take more than a single apology. I mean, you've been gone for over a year. But at the same time, you haven't. You've been in the same house and we've been in the same apartment and yet you couldn't be bothered to even check on her. Forget about me, and how you feel about us together, that's your daughter."

She thinks of all the nights Quinn cried silently to herself, too proud to just tell Rachel it bothers her to be so disconnected from her dad. She thinks off all the things he's missed, all the small holidays and the big ones and she starts to fume.

But she figures an angry tirade from her is neither wanted nor appreciated. So she takes two deep breaths and starts again.

"Listen, the reality is that we don't have a venue. I have yet to pick a dress and I'm pretty sure Quinn hasn't gone to a single fitting even though I've been nagging her about it. We can't agree on which flowers and we don't have a cake. Also just remembered that we haven't sent back the final menu to the caterer. I really need to do that. But the point is…we're getting married. Rain or shine, hell or high water, with…or without you. And that's about the _only _thing we've agreed on thus far. I want to spend my life with her and for some reason, she wants to spend hers with _me. _And you don't have to like it, you don't have to approve of it. But if you miss it, if you _miss _your only child getting married…she won't forgive you for that. I know Quinn and she…she won't forgive you. So Mr. Fabray, I'm begging you. Please just try. Keep calling until she picks up and listens. Fly out if you have to, but don't just let her tell you she doesn't care because she does. She loves you and she wants you to fix this even if she would never admit it out loud, even to me. Now, I have to go. I'm in the middle of rehearsals. But, like I said, just keep trying. Thank you for your time."

Her heart is pounding as she presses the red end button. She takes a calming breath, proud of herself for getting that all out without stuttering or floundering. She throws the phone back in her bag and heads out of her cramped dressing room, head higher than ever knowing she's finally told Mr. Fabray what he needed to hear.

* * *

"Yet another flawless performance Rachel Berry!"

"Thanks Kurt!" She takes a long swig of water before taking a seat next to him in the first row.

"It's so hard to believe that in a few weeks this place will be filled to the brim. Well…hopefully."

Tickets don't go on sell for another week and a half but she's so anxious to see how they do. First night ticket sales are so important because some of the greatest and longest Broadway shows sold out their first show and she wants them to sell out so badly.

They've been doing a lot of promoting in the past few weeks and she hopes that's enough. She and Sienn had an interview two days ago to discuss their on-stage romance and Rachel was happy that Quinn hadn't been there for that one. Sienn was touchy and more than a little flirty and on a few occasions the columnist glanced between them, surely curious as to whether there was something more to it. More to them. Fortunately, that interview hadn't been on screen and so Quinn would never see it.

"So, I have good news!"

"Which I find is often accompanied by bad news…"

"No no, no other side of the coin this time! All good!"

That perks her up, she's in desperate need for some good news.

"I've got another interview for you. With your friends at Good Morning America!"

Her eyes widen and she nearly chokes on her water.

"What?! Again?!"

Kurt nods smugly, "Yup, they want you back on the show. Specifically reached out to me. Unfortunately, it's only a 20 minute segment this time _but _they want to use 10 for the show and the other 10 to talk about your upcoming nuptials."

"Well, I don't know Kurt. This close to the show, shouldn't we be using every interview to promote? I want to sell this place out and until that happens, I wouldn't feel right using quality camera time to talk about getting married."

"Rach, trust me, you selling it out and putting on a killer performance keeps me working so I get it. But you have to understand that as important as work is, it's important to be likeable. Being perceived as fun and interesting and _nice _goes a long way in this industry. You want to the audience to love you before they even see you. If they think of you as a friend, they're more likely to overlook any small flaws and focus on how great it was! Just trust me okay?"

She nods, having no choice but to trust him completely after he's secured a second interview on GMA.

"Okay, okay, I trust you! Yeah, this will be great!"

"It is! Alright, so I'll call and confirm. It's going to be another early morning but Blaine has been working on a few things for you so we'll come over the night before to decide on a dress and then hair and make-up next day at 5."

She nods absentmindedly. "Okay, sure."

"What are you thinking about?"

"I…I was just thinking…or wondering rather…I can't get Quinn to see a tailor to save her life. She's always so busy and I don't know…I was wondering, do you think Blaine would be able to take her measurements? Maybe make her a white suit for the wedding? We'd pay you of course."

"Oh wow. Uh, I'm sure he'd be honored and please don't worry about paying us. It'd be our wedding gift to you both. Honestly, it's the least we could do for you after giving me a chance Rach."

She just shakes her head. "No seriously Kurt, I couldn't have come this far this fast without you. You've been working your ass off for me and I really appreciate it. And Blaine designing everything has been like a dream. Honestly, he has made me the prettiest dresses and I just…can't thank you both enough."

Kurt just shakes his head and they both probably look like a couple of idiots near tears.

Rachel turns her eyes up to the sky in an effort to keep them at bay, "Damn it dads for making me so emotional!"

Kurt laughs as he swats at his own eyes, "Anyway, have you given any thought to a different venue? Are you still dead set on Valentine's or whatever?"

She shakes her head, finally calmed down, "No, I don't know how we can be at this point. And it probably works out anyway. Quinn managed to talk some sense into me and it's just still so cold in February, sometimes it's still snowing. We've checked in with the planner at Central Park and they don't have anything until early June. Which seems too far away but at the same time, Quinn and I haven't been able to settle on anything for this damn wedding. I just know I want to write my own vows and I think she does too. That's about it."

Kurt nods, "Yeahh, maybe it's for the best then."

"Yeahh, except that awkward moment when you send out Save The Dates…"

"Yeahhh, well you know…it's your wedding Rach. You don't have to get married In February. You don't have to get married next year at all. Do it because you want to, not because you feel like you have to otherwise everyone will be disappointed or something."

She sighs, considering that for a moment. "Yeah, I guess you're right. We've got a guest list of less than 30 people anyway and most of them are already here in New York. So I'm sure if we just called them and personally let them know, we should be fine. This time I'll make sure I have a venue and date _set _first!"

Kurt throws his head back and laughs. "Yes! That would be wise! Alright, looks like we're done for the day. You get home to your gorgeous but frightening fiancée and I'll see you Thursday. You've got tomorrow off because the understudy is on, so use it wisely. Get a massage or something. Or do an at home face mask!"

Kurt's excitement about things she couldn't care less about is to be expected at this point, so she simply smiles and nods, having no intention of doing either of those things, before heading back to her dressing room to grab her things.

She's more than ready to get home to her gorgeous, and occasionally frightening, fiancée.

* * *

"Rachel, that's seriously amazing! You know, though I was skeptical about him, Kurt has really come through for you!"

She scoffs at the word skeptical, knowing full well that Quinn all but hated him when they first started working together.

"Yeah, he has been really great. And I'm beyond excited to have another big interview with them. And, _and, _the best part is that I get to spend 10 whole minutes talking about my favorite thing in the world…you."

Quinn quickly glances over at her while seasoning the salmon she's preparing to sear.

"Well, I'm super excited to see it! I only wish I could be there in person."

She immediately frowns, remembering that Quinn has a standard 9-5 and can't be at every interview.

She approaches and loops her arms around her slim waist.

"I wish you could come with me."

Quinn shakes her head gently, apologetically. "No can do, love. I actually have a 7am meeting that's set to go until the early afternoon. _But _I will definitely record it here at home and I'll even tweet about it." She turns in Rachel's arms, "I'll let all of my followers know that my amazing bride-to-be is going to be on national television."

Rachel beams and kisses her quickly before backing away, "Thanks babe. But this bride is starving so let's talking and more…" she gestures wildly around the kitchen, "more of whatever it is you do in here."

Quinn chuckles but gets back to work, "I see I've got a bride-zilla on my hands."

Rachel hears it as she heads back to the living room but says nothing. She's still reeling over the word "bride" so she couldn't care less about what's attached to the end of it.

_Rachel Berry, bride-to-be, _she repeats to herself for the rest of the night as she and Quinn cuddle up for dinner and settle into their evening routine.

###

"Rachel, it is such a pleasure to have you back on with us."

"It's such a pleasure, and an honor, to be here Robin!"

"Well, let's just jump right in, I know it's only been about a month or so since we've seen you but how have you been?"

She lets out a puff of air. "Busy. So very busy! We've got the show opening in just a few weeks and I swear I've never been up so early or in bed so late in my life. But I love it! I'm happy and loving it."

"That's so great to hear! And do you think everyone is ready for opening night?"

Immediately, she thinks of a few people, mostly understudies that could use an extra month or two, but she continues to smile for the camera.

"Oh definitely! Everyone is working so hard to bring this whole production to life and we're, more than anything, just so excited for the world to see it!"

"I, for one, am very much looking forward to it! Now, I know you play Adele…can you tell us a bit what she's like?"

"Yes, I play Adele Whatley, who's this tiny, timid Midwestern girl. And I'm so grateful to have been chosen for this part because there's just such a connection to the character for me. She's grown up in a small town, a little no name town in Ohio, which isn't exactly my experience, but she's so ambitious. She's a go-getter, for sure. And her whole life, she's been surrounded by people who told her what she could and couldn't be. What she could and couldn't do. Her parents were strict and religious and she was bullied in school and so after graduating high school, she's more than ready to get out of town. So she packs up and gets on the last train that same night and just leaves behind everything. And of course…she's headed to the big apple. It's all very "Don't Stop Believin', now that I'm describing it!"

They share what seems to be a genuine laugh and her heart does a figure 8 at the thought that someone in the world, besides Quinn, finds her funny.

"Now, I know you said you feel quite the connection to the role. Does any of that, sort of, give us a glimpse into your life?"

"Um, well, I grew up in Boston, in a small little suburb, but it certainly wasn't a small farming town or anything. I did however…I had a hard time in school. I wasn't the most popular girl, by any means. But the nice thing was that I had very supportive parents. My dads really did appreciate and respect my goals and dreams and did everything they could to see them come true."

"So, then how did you capture that feeling? The feeling of not being accepted?"

"I…," she considers how much she should share.

She knows exactly how she captured the feeling of loneliness and a lack of acceptance. She watched Quinn struggle with it her whole life. She watched as Quinn tried hard to be what her parents expected and she was there when Quinn, in an effort to be herself, was rejected by her father. Every scene with her parents in Act I, she conjures up those moments when Quinn would lay beside her and cry, expressing how it seemed like good was never good enough for her family. Every time she has to force tears to her eyes, she remembers how helpless she felt, lying next to Quinn as she sobbed. She remembers crying herself, just wishing she could solve all of her friend's problems. And during her final song of act one, as she boards the train and says goodbye to everyone she knows within the span of 3 minutes and 13 seconds, she thinks of the moment Quinn told her she was passing up MIT to go to Columbia instead. She remembers looking her in the eyes and shaking her head, silently warning her not to do it. Trying to convince her without words not to give up her dream for something as frivolous as friendship. But Quinn had grabbed her shoulders and told her, "That's his dream. Not mine. And this decision is too big, too important, to let someone else make it for me."

She channels that moment and sings with such conviction. She is able to play Adele because Quinn played her first.

But, of course, that's all far too much information for a simple 10 minute interview so she responds with something inarguably less dramatic and heart wrenching.

"I remembered my years in school. I attended public school most of my life and then moved to private school for high school and I just…I didn't fit in well there at all."

They all look at her sympathetically and nod, as if they have similar life stories.

"That's a shame. So you were bullied then?"

She nods, "I was for a year or so. Badly. They made fun of my hair, my clothes, my dreams. Everything and anything. People can be cruel."

She leaves out the most important part, of course, that Quinn was briefly a part of the slew of cruel kids in high school.

"And so this must be sort of a satisfying moment for you now then. To sit here and have the opportunity to be on Broadway. If those people were here now, or if they were watching, what would you want to say to them?"

She smiles and thinks of what she has already said to Quinn. "I forgive you," she says looking directly into the camera. She keeps her gaze there for a moment, in case there are any other girls from the squad or fat, washed up football studs out there that happen to be watching.

"The reality is that it takes the saddest person to feel the need to make others feel bad about themselves. It took me awhile to realize it, but they weren't bullying me because there was something wrong with me, they did it because there was something wrong with _them_, something going on in their lives that they weren't happy about. So it was as much a learning experience about being strong as it was about being understanding of everyone's story. So…I mean, I don't hold any ill feelings about it now. I'm exactly where I'm meant to be and I'm sure Adele would say the same."

She adds a short laugh at the end, more than ready to get back to talking about the show.

"Of course, and one thing we're all pretty excited to see is Adele experiencing love in the big city. Can you tell us a bit about your co-star Sienn, who plays your love interest Iris Holloway?

She immediately, and involuntarily, rolls her eyes as she thinks of her eccentric co-star.

"Yes, Sienna is incredible! She's so funny and genuine and it's been such a pleasure getting to know her while exploring our characters together."

"Now, it's been said," Joe cuts in finally, "that you two have quite the chemistry. Critiques who have sat in are saying that your love is "electric". Is that something you had to work on or were you just naturally great together?"

"You know, there's definitely a chemistry there. I don't think we could ever capture this young, crazy love the script calls for if there was no spark there, but I don't think it's entirely natural. I've had natural chemistry with someone and it's not quite that. But we definitely get along well and we're constantly critiquing each other to make improvements so I'm happy to hear that her constant nagging has paid off."

The cast laughs along with her and she's just desperate to get off of the sensitive topic that is Sienn. She knows when she watches this later with Quinn, she's going to get nothing but grunts and eye rolling as she has to hear about their apparently "electric" love.

"Well, it surely has! We're all so excited to see it. In fact, we've heard there's a bit of a fight scene where you show off a rather hot temper? Is that something we can look forward to?"

She sweeps some hair from her eyes, "Oh absolutely. Right now, that's my favorite scene. Mostly because I get to yell at her, I think." That statement is probably too honest and she can just see Kurt cringing from his spot just behind stage.

"Not you! Not Broadway's sweetheart!"

She laughs good-naturedly and decides she should probably fix this. "I probably enjoy it for that very reason. I'm very assertive, definitely but my fiancée is much more passive. She mostly handles things with like reasonable discussions and much more patience than what I possess, so that's how any arguments we have go. They're pretty tame and calm these days. So the opportunity to yell and shout and be angry like that has actually been sort of fun. So that's easily one of my favorite scenes to do, particularly with Sienn."

"And speaking of your fiancée, we're excited to talk all about your upcoming wedding and we will as soon as we come back! Stay tuned."

Immediately, there's a flurry of action around her. Blaine is fixing her hair that is probably still pristine.

Kurt is at her side, admonishing her for her comment about loving to yell at her co-star but even he admits that it was a smooth transition into Quinn, so she doesn't even bother apologizing.

But just as the camera men issue a thirty second warning, Kurt smirks at her.

"Nervous to talk about Quinn and the wedding?"

"Nooo?" She gives it an upward inflection at the very last moment because his question makes her think she should be nervous.

"Great, you'll be great. Just be natural."

But there's something about his face that makes her nervous and as they count down from five to tell her they're live again, she has to take a deep breath before looking back over to the anchors.

"For those just joining us, we're back on with Rachel Berry, star in the upcoming Broadway musical "6 Decembers of New York"! Now Rachel, just before we took a break, and actually the last time you were on the show, you dropped the bombshell that you were engaged! Has it been busy planning a wedding and preparing for a show on Broadway all at once?"

"Oh gosh, maybe it would be if I were actually managing to do both at the same time. The wedding has definitely had to take a backseat for the last few months."

"Do you all have a venue chosen?" Robin asks leaning forward in her chair, clearing dying to know.

"Oh gosh, that's actually been the toughest part. We decided on a date before securing a venue so now everything is probably going to change. It's looking like early June, but still central park which has always been a dream of mine."

The entire audience coos and she blushes, just thinking about her wedding day with Quinn.

"Are either of you nervous or mostly excited?"

She grimaces, "I'm not sure where she's at right now. I have no doubts that she wants to get married, but honestly, she's just not that helpful. She's about as passive with this as she is with everything else. I'm like, let's do this right now. Let's figure everything out and get married right now but with Quinn, it'll happen when it happens." She shrugs with a smile to illustrate her point.

"And do you think Quinn would agree with you on that? That she's the hold up?"

"Ha! No, trust me, Quinn would make up a very reasonable sounding excuse for why it's _my _fault!"

"Well," Robin smirks, so similar to the one Kurt was wearing minutes before. "We could take your word or we could ask Quinn herself. Everyone, please welcome Rachel's fiancée, Quinn Fabray!"

The audience bursts with applause and the anchors stand but Rachel is frozen in shock. She opens and closes her mouth while looking around helplessly, unable to believe it.

_Quinn's here? _

She's rooted in her seat until finally Quinn has hugged everyone and prepares to take a seat. It's that moment, like an idiot, that she nearly tackles her to the ground.

She immediately wraps her arms around Quinn and hugs her fiercely.

"Baby."

Quinn's strong arms wrap around her and she forgets for a whole minute where she is.

"Baby, what are you doing here?" She mumbles it into Quinn's shoulder, not really caring if she's heard or not as they sway back and forth.

"I wanted to surprise you."

"Well, is this a surprise Rachel?" She's not sure who asks but she nods anyway.

"Why don't you two have a seat?"

But Rachel doesn't move an inch and it takes Quinn pulling away to finally knock her out of her moment.

"Sit, Rach." She finally regains her composure and reclaims her seat, but she never let's go of Quinn's hand.

"Well, first Quinn welcome and thank you for being here this morning. We know you're a busy woman."

The statement is aimed at Quinn but she never takes her eyes off of Rachel. "Never too busy for her."

She brings Rachel's hand to her lips and kisses it gently and everyone, but especially Rachel, swoons.

This is what she pictured when they first came up with this whole idea. This concept of contracts and commitments.

She wanted someone at her side, someone who doted on and adored her and for it all to come to life in front of her very eyes, (and millions of viewers, but she momentarily forgets about them) she falls in love with Quinn all over again.

"You two are adorable. I love it. So, just before you came out, we were discussing your upcoming nuptials. When's the big day?"

Quinn squeezes her hand, her way of showing her own excitement for their wedding day. Whichever that day that may be.

"Um, right now we're not exactly sure. We both really liked Valentine's Day for our own personal reasons but obviously, it's booked for Central park and has been since 2012."

Everyone laughs but she can't tear her eyes away from Quinn's effortless beauty. She's wearing her usual sundress, red in color and her hair is up in a beautiful bun and though her make up is on pretty thick, she still looks natural. She can only imagine those at home, mouths agape, in awe of this woman.

"So I think Rach mentioned something about June, which is fine by me." She turns to Rachel. "June is fine by me, I'm not sure if I said that already."

She has a little laugh at that and it snaps her back to the moment, realizing that she has to say something, she can't just stare at Quinn the entire time.

"Yeah, you said it was good."

"Did you put us down then, for an official date?"

Rachel then looks over at the co-hosts that are just beaming watching them live in their own world.

"See, this is what I mean you guys. Quinn _could've _called to pick a day in June, but she left it to me."

Quinn sputters for a second, "Well, no! No, I…the thing is, I just leave it to her because I don't want to mess anything up. One thing Rach will never mention is that she likes to get her way, so I've found that just letting her do her thing is the best approach. I'm sure you guys maybe can understand."

She waves at Michael and George, who are smirking a bit and nodding, clearly understanding how wives can be.

"I've gotta agree with Quinn, man. There are days that my wife just cannot be stopped or persuaded. That woman does what she wants."

"Exactly! Rach knows she runs the place, which is exactly how she likes it. So don't let her fool you. And not only that, but I trust her to make good decisions for the both of us, so I never worry. She's really good about handling even the smallest details so I know when I've left her to do something, it'll be done and done well."

Rachel leans over and kisses her on the cheek, feeling the heat of Quinn's skin beneath her lips.

"See, she's a little useless but she's sweet."

That causes the crowd to roar in laughter.

"Now, Quinn, I know Rachel said last time, you're a pretty private person so again thank you for joining us. She mentioned you work 9-5 right?"

"I do, I'm an investment banker so I sit at my desk or give conference room presentations about numbers and things that make no sense to anyone outside of the office."

"So then how did you two find each other? The singer and the business scholar?"

"Oh, Rach and I have actually known each other since we were kids."

"Since birth actually," she interjects because that's her favorite fact in the world.

"Oh my! That's quite awhile," Robin says genuinely intrigued. "So you've both known each other since birth, that's incredible."

"Just her actually, she's known me all her life. I spent the most unbearable six months of my infancy without her though."

Rachel laughs gently, stroking Quinn's hand aimlessly. Anything to keep from wrapping them around her neck and pulling her in for the sort of kiss that would have even nudists blushing.

"Wow, so when did you two make things official?"

She chimes in for this one, "It actually took us an embarrassingly long time to realize that we had feelings for one another. It sort of…snuck up on us, I guess?"

Quinn nods, agreeing. "Yeah, it was definitely not something either of us saw coming. I always knew I wanted to be around her, I wanted her in my life forever. And I just…one day, I just started looking at her differently. She was still my best friend but all of a sudden…"

Quinn looks to her, seemingly at a loss for words so she jumps in, "All of a sudden, there was a word for everything I felt for her. There was a reason why my heart would beat faster when she smiled at me and there was a reason why I used to just lay next to her in absolute silence watching her do her homework. I was in love with her before I even realized it."

"Yeah, yeah." Quinn says breathily. "Same."

When she finally tears her gaze away from Quinn's shining eyes and looks at Michael, George and Robin she knows that they're probably just as in love with Quinn as she is. And she can only imagine how her Twitter is blowing up right now.

"That's just amazing that you two found yourselves here. Quinn, I know Rachel has said numerous times that this was her dream…Is this where you saw yourself? On Good Morning America less than 4 weeks away from Rachel's Broadway debut?"

"To be honest, not really. I-I had a lot of things lined up for me. From the moment I was born, you know, I was a part of a family name and a business that I was supposed to run. But then I got to grow up beside her, literally watching her discover her talent and her passion for Broadway. I watched her win talent shows and I watched her cry when I…when the people I called my friends bullied her in high school. We've been through everything together and so, though I didn't exactly expect to be here on television or anything, I have always expected her to be up on that stage and I always pictured myself beside her. So, you know, this isn't exactly what I've dreamt of, but I dreamt of Rachel. So I guess we'll have whatever life she's been dreaming of and that works just fine for me."

There's a long silence and Rachel, eyes brimming with tears, finally breaks it.

"This is how she gets away with making me plan a whole wedding. She's such a sweet talker."

The hosts are all beaming. The audience is laughing.

But she and Quinn, like always, are in a world of their own.

Completely and utterly in love.

And from nearly 300 miles away, Mr. Fabray watches as that love radiates through the big screen on the wall of his large, empty office.

**######**

**It's late but it's long which I can only hope makes up for the delay! This one really took a lot out of me because I kept writing and rewriting so I hope you all like the final draft. As always, I appreciate the favorites, follows and the reviews! Especially the reminders about how we're a few days shy of two months without an update. Your desperate reminders keep me going! Haha Your feedback is always welcome and I beg you to hang in there with me. It's looking like maybe 3 or 4 more chapters! We're almost there! Until next time! (Next time should be late October!)**

**Title by: Phillip Phillips**


	24. Sorry Seems To Be The Hardest Word

Dinner between them is their usual quiet affair.

He compliments her on food he's 90% sure she didn't make.

She asks him about a day he's had that she was only 10% apart of.

But today, as he cuts into his steak, he cannot keep quiet.

"I uh…Quinnie was on the television today."

Judy immediately looks up at him.

"She…what?"

She says it as if Quinn has long been dead and this news is like she's come back to life.

"She was on tv. With Rachel. She was on Good Morning America, if you can believe it. Rachel's show is opening end of the year. They were talking about it."

Judy drops her fork.

"That was on this morning. Why….why are you just telling me?"

"Well Judith, this is my first time seeing you since breakfast," he says with a little more bite than he should.

"But you've been here all day! You've been holed up in that damn office all day and I've been here!"

"Well, you had your club meeting, I didn't want to interrupt."

He goes back to his food, really just to have something else to focus on than her legitimate, albeit snappy answer. Which seems to be the case more and more these days, with her tone towards him becoming snappier and sassier each day.

_Well, when she's talking to me, that is. _He realizes they've been talking less and less. They've been strategically finding ways to see each other less and less.

"For an hour Russ! One hour and not once throughout the day you couldn't find the time to tell me that you had seen our…," she drops her head in her hand and rubs furiously at her temples.

"Wh-She…we haven't talked about this in months, so I-"

Even to this day, she's the only person in the world that can make him stutter and stumble for words.

"And why is that Russell?! Why is it that we haven't talked about our _only child _in months?"

"You know why!"

"Russ, I know her leaving hurt you but I just…we missed her graduation and I can never forgive myself for that. I just wish that whatever she said…we could just put it behind us."

"She walked out on us, Judy."

As the words leave his mouth, he finds the bile aiming to do the same.

"I just don't understand why Quinnie would do something like that. I know we were surprised at first but we would've come around. Did she really think we wouldn't come around?"

Her voice sounds so pained and not for the first time, he regrets telling her that Quinn randomly decided to pack up her things and leave.

It wasn't even intentional.

He had found her note early the next morning and in a fit of rage, and at the thought of her walking out on her family being solely his fault, he had burned it.

He'd left the credit cards where they were and let Judy discover them in the morning and draw her own conclusions.

When she insisted they reach out to Quinn, to mend whatever had been broken, he had told her that she didn't want to be contacted by either of them. He'd given her a loosely summarized quote of what Quinn had told him.

_"__Judy, she told me she didn't care if we came to the wedding. She…she told us we could burn her pictures for all she cared. She and Rachel want to make it together…on their own."_

And as his wife of nearly 25 years cried into his arms, he'd never felt like less of a man.

Even now, he still feels like a coward, unable to tell her that it's his fault.

Because the only thing that kills him more than not speaking to Quinn or knowing if she's well is knowing that he's the reason she walked away.

"I don't know sweetheart."

Judy looks up, surprised at the sweet name he hasn't used in so long.

Her heart softens a bit.

"Did she…did she at least look happy?"

He can't bring himself to say anything, so he just nods.

Judy sighs. "Well, I for one would like to see her."

His eyes widen momentarily until she finishes her thought, "Did you record it? Or…is it on demand?"

"I-," he wills his heart to stop beating so hard, "I'm sure you can find it on demand or online."

She nods and they finish their meal in silence.

He reasons, later in the evening tucked away in the safety of his office, that this can't continue much longer. He has to fix this with one of them. Because if Judy hears from Quinn that it was his shameful words and his selfish actions that lead her to leaving, she'll kill him.

And if Quinn gets a call from her mother, interrogating her on why she would abandon her family, all chances of reconciling things with his only daughter will disappear in the blink of an eye.

And worse than all of that, he thinks of their forgiveness. He knows Judy won't forgive him if she find before he confesses and if Quinn doesn't either and he loses both of them, then he's not sure what else there would be to live for.

He downs his glass of scotch, his own father's liquid courage and now his, and stands from his desk, preparing to face his wife.

He knows what Quinn thinks of him. She'd always subtly hinted at it, but that last night, in his office, he had told her.

She thought he was some sort of silent abuser. Someone who needed control over everything around him. She made him feel like a bad husband and an even worse father, but she hadn't been wrong.

He was hard on Quinn. He held Judy close to him. But not out of control, never that. He only knows this because his father had that problem. And he exercised his control, always yelling and throwing things and using his fists when he didn't get his way.

He knows of abuse and he knows that that's not him.

But he also knows that he holds on too tightly. He wouldn't say it aloud but he loves too hard for his own good. He always wants the best for his family, even if that means being absent for some things. Even if what's best doesn't always make them happy. Judy has everything and more than that which he ever promised her when they were young and foolish and so he regrets nothing, though he knows as a husband he's dropped the ball more than a few times. Being out of the country for business the day Quinn was born being one of his biggest regrets. But he tries. He's always trying to make their lives easy, more comfortable.

But he knows it's always been hard for them to see that.

And now this. Now he's lied to his wife's face over and over again. He's alienated their only child.

He has to fix it. He knows he'll be on the couch until the day he retires (that day put off even further considering Quinn isn't running the business as planned) when he comes clean, but he knows that if he lets this continue on any longer, it'll blow up in his face.

He flicks off the light tiredly and heads to their bedroom.

He can hear it from the hallway. His daughter's laughter. He can hear the smile in her voice and he runs his hands through his hair. He takes a deep breath and pushes the door open.

Judy is seated on the chaise, brushing her hair and beaming proudly at the large t.v. on the wall.

He can tell that she's mid interview, having already seen it for himself more than once.

"See, she's a little useless, but she's sweet."

Judy laughs along with Quinn and the rest of the audience.

He starts unbuttoning his shirt to change as the interview continues to play in the background, a stinging reminder of just how badly he's fucked this all up.

"Ready for bed, hon?"

Judy only waves a hand at him and he gets in bed, knowing better than to bother her.

He pretends to read for another few minutes before she finally turns it off.

"She…she looks so happy."

He grunts, not because he doesn't care but because he knows it's not 100% genuine. Rachel's call assured him of that.

"And she and Rachel seem so in love, which even I must admit, I never saw coming. I…I always knew they were close but I just never thought they'd be getting married. I mean…now that they're lesbians, I wonder if Quinn will be even wearing a dress. You know, I had always planned on giving her mine when she got married but now…oh, well, I know she probably wouldn't want it but maybe we could send it anyway? You think? Even if she…even if she didn't want it or ripped it up, maybe it'd be a step to let her know I'm not mad. That we can still fix this?"

After seeing her happily smiling at Rachel and Quinn's interview, he'd decided he wasn't going to do this tonight. He had planned to tell her over breakfast or some other mildly pleasant activity the following day but he can't bear this weight any longer.

"She…she'd probably love to wear your dress, Jude. It's not you she's mad at. It's…it's me."

She looks up into the mirror at him, hands that were just moisturizing her skin coming to a complete standstill.

"What? What does that mean?"

He takes another deep breath, focusing more on his hands in his lap than her penetrating gaze.

"She's not mad at you. Or even us. She didn't leave because of us. She left that night because of me."

She whips around to face him directly at top speed.

"What did you _do _Russell?"

Maybe it's the use of his whole name or maybe it's the tone, but it reminds him of what his father used to tell him.

_You messed up, son. So hold your head high and take your lashings like a man._

He lifts his head and he would look the part of the strong, stoic man if not for the apology in his eyes.

"Because I told her that I thought her marrying Rachel was a mistake. I told her that if she wanted to be with Rachel, we wouldn't be footing the bill for a wedding."

"Wh-How…Russell, how could you say those things to your _daughter? _Can't you see how much she loves that girl?" And ironically enough, she points to the television that is frozen on the image of the two, of Quinn and Rachel facing one another talking just as the show takes a commercial break.

And he does see it. If he's being completely honest, he's seen it since day one.

Quinn was always quick to come to Rachel's aid, even when they were toddlers. They shared everything, never fought over anything. And the one year that they seemed to see less of Rachel, their first year of high school, that had been the saddest year of his life. He had watched his little girl shut herself in her room. She wouldn't eat and wouldn't take phone calls and rarely went out, even with her new school friends. It was him who had stressed and stayed up all night, pacing the floors wondering what could've happened to make her so upset, while Judy lay in bed reading, promising it was all just Quinn being a teen. And even now, he can't forget the smile on his little girl's face when she one day over summer came bounding into the kitchen, informing them of how'd she quit the cheer team and was headed to the mall with Rachel.

So, "Of course I see it, Judy! I was just…I just wanted what was best for her. And in the process…I…I said some awful things about Rachel."

Judy's eyes narrow, but the tears still manage to make their way down her cheeks.

"For a _year. _For a whole year you let me believe our baby just picked up and left but the truth was that you pushed her away?!"

She's becoming frantic, so he gets out of bed and moves to approach her.

"No. No, don't you come near me Russell. You stay right there. I can barely look at you, let alone stand the thought of you touching me, trying to make this better."

"Judy, let me explain."

"There's nothing to say!" she screams and it genuinely frightens him. She's never once yelled _at _him.

"There's nothing you could say! You let me believe that she left us, Russell! Just walked out one night without a word or a note! You convinced me that she wanted nothing to do with us so we don't call for Christmas! I miss my baby's birthday and her…_her graduation, _for God's sake. She graduated from college and we weren't even there. I sent a card, thinking even that might be too much! And why?! All because you…you what?! _How could you do this?!" _

"Because I love her! Just as much as you do, Judy! I know I got a terrible way of showing it, but I love her too! She's my little girl too, you know?! And I _always _want what's best for her! And I had just built her future in my head! Just like you wanted her to get married in your dress and have a million grandbabies running around…I wanted her by my side at the office. I wanted to take her on business trips, show her the ropes. I always kind of imagined that one day we'd be working and I'd introduce her to a new guy or something and they'd click and get married and then your dream for her could start. I don't know…in the moment, I called myself doing what was best but I…-"

"_My _dream for her?! Russ, my dream for her has always been for her to be HAPPY! I don't want anything else in this world but to see that smile on her face." She points back to the screen but this time he can't bear to look.

"I know it must kill you, but at the end of the day our dreams for her don't matter! She has a life of her own, dreams of her own! And if Rachel is her dream, if Rachel is the reason why she smiles like that more often, then so be it! But you listen to me, Russell Raymond Fabray and hear me well."

He looks up at her, willing to accept whatever comes from her mouth next.

"You _will _fix this. Because I've missed too much already to miss this wedding. I don't care if you don't ever fix your relationship with our daughter, you _will _tell her that I had nothing to do with this! You need to call her and tell her that. And after that, I don't care what you do. Come to the wedding or don't. Pay for it or don't. But I'm _not_ missing it. So make sure I'm on her guest list before you hang up with her. Do you hear me?"

"Yes, I'll fix it."

"You'd better," she huffs in anger. "In the meantime, get out of my sight."

He looks her dead in the eye and he's never seen her more serious or more upset.

He blinks back tears and grabs his pillow off the bed and heads to the door, pausing just before leaving.

"Jude, I-I'm so so sorry."

"I don't want to hear it right now. I really don't. I want you out of here. And don't you dare speak to me until you've resolved this."

He nods once more and shuts the door behind him.

######

**So, unfortunately, no Quinn or Rachel interactions BUT a necessary scene to see what life has been like in the Fabray household. That's also why I wanted to get this one out quickly, a month's wait for this would've seemed just cruel. This was one I agonized over so I hope it was okay. Please let me know your thoughts! Thank you for the comments, favorites, and follows! You guys are the best audience! Until next time! **

**Title by Elton John. **


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